Immortality, And All Of Its Curses
by Random4Now
Summary: Shadow and Amy get married. At the begging of their marriage they must over come some of their differences and learn to tolerate Sonic. But as the years pass, Amy begins to age, but Shadow will always stay the same. Ch6 up! R
1. For Better or Worse, Say I do

**I do not own Sonic Amy or any of the other characters related to the Sonic Team. In the story you may see a few fan characters, and those belong to me. Oh, I also do not own Lime Coke. Now on to the story!**

**A/N** As in most stories, the best place to start is the beginning, so that is were we'll start. Even though I would like to skip the beginning, for beginning''s have to many introduction and formalities. After the introduction is when stories are the best, but to spare you from confusion, the author of the novel, drama, or short story, must fill the start of his or her writing with introduction''s and formalities. So let us precede!

* * *

It was a lovely June morning. The sun was shining very brightly and every living thing was affected by the heat that normally accompanies the month of June. So because of this inconvenience, the start of our story takes place indoors with the blessed gift of air-conditioning. In station square there's a little church to the north of the train station, and in this church Amy Rose was getting ready for her  
Wedding.

"Hurry Amy," said a very uptight Cream. Though it was not her wedding, she was very nervous. Amy was her dearest friend and she was both sad and happy to see her getting married.

"Cream, if you don't calm down I'll never get ready," replied Amy, who was a tad flustered with her wedding dress and Cream was only adding to her frustration. " You can go ahead and leave, you need to finished getting yourself ready. I can take it from  
here."

"Are you sure?""

"I'll be fine. Now go on, I need to get ready!""

With that Cream left Amy to her thoughts. On someone's wedding day,one often thinks of the past and how it lead to marriage. Which was exactly what Amy was doing. As she strained her dress and searched the dressing room for her left shoe, she started thinking on how she first came to love Shadow. Eggman had built some sort of "hedggie kill''n machine". Surprisingly, (not really) Eggman wired it wrong. When he tried to use it, the contraption over loaded and formed some sort of sphere of light before it blew up. Some way or another, this light brought Sally the Chipmunk to Station Square. Naturally Amy was angry. She pulled out her hammer with thoughts of running towards Sally faster than you could blink an eye to teach her a lesson or two. But Sonic zoomed to Sally's side before Amy could make any actions. He was over joyed to see Sally. Amy found herself just standing and staring in awe. She was about to pick her hammer back up and charge, when Sally leaned over and kissed Sonic. Amy through down her hammer and ran off in tears. She ran till she couldn't run any more. She sat on the beach under the bridge just bawling and feeling sorry for herself. For a while she thought she was alone. But an awkwardness began to fill the air, and out of the corner her eye, she was sure that she saw something move. She reached for her hammer to wack what ever it was hard as she could and hoping that it wasn't one of Eggman's evil machines or Sonic and Sally. But she had thrown it down in anger, and the hammer was no longer an option for protection. But she still had her fists! She turned in rage ready to hit what ever was there, only to see the black and red hedgehog, Shadow. She fell to her knees and returned to crying. Shadow knelt in the sand and lifted her head.

"Your gonna flowed the beach," he said grimly.

"Sally...Sonic...I HATE THEM!" And Amy began to bawl.

"Hey," Shadow replied softly, "there's bigger fish in the sea."

Amy stop crying and looked at Shadow. She stuck out her lower lip in a pout and began to tear up again. "But I don't like fish."

Shadow couldn't help but smile at Amy's genius remark, yet he felt sympathy for her. He placed his hand on her shoulder. "What I mean is, Sonic's not the only guy on the face of this poor pathetic Earth."

Shadow's optimistic point of view on the Earth made her smile. "You have such away with words."

"There's others Amy. And there not that hard to find if you look. Besides, Sonic is an ugly shade of blue and is far to vain for my tastes."

Amy smiled and through her arms around Shadows neck to give him a hug. What really surprised her was that after a few seconds of shock, he wrapped his arms around her returning her hug.

* * *

There was a knock at the door. "Amy, do you need help? Your taking a long time to get ready!" It was Cream.

"Cream! I'm fine. Besides, the wedding won't start without me. Now go help Shadow with his bow tie or something."

Amy opened the box that held her vale. As she tried to put it on without messing up her hair, she began to giggle as she remembered the night Shadow asked her to marry him. They had just finished egging Sonic's house. They did this every month on the first Friday of the first week. Amy accidently through an egg into an open window and hit Sonic in the head. She had been laughing so hard that she had trouble running away and her sides began hurt. She sat on a bench in the park as she began to calm down. The night air was cool and there was a gentle breeze wisping by. The moon was full, and the stars filled the night sky. It was beautiful, and she was glad that Shadow was there with her. She looked up at him, he seemed a little uneasy and nervous.

"Are you afraid that Sonic is gonna get ya?" she said teasingly.

"No," he replied with a chuckle, "he should be more worried about me get'n him"

Amy smiled and turned he gaze back to the sky. She suddenly became thirsty and was reaching for her bottle of Lime Coke, when Shadow handed her something. It was a little black box.

"I...er...I want to ask you something. That is... Ah, Never mind, I'm no good at this sort of thing!" Shadow began to turn and run. But Amy had opened the box while he was talking. Inside was a diamond ring with a rock the size of Texas! Amy grabbed Shadow's arm. When he turned around, she kissed him. He took that as a yes.

But the real fun began when Amy arrived home. She lived with Cream and Vanilla in a small house just outside of town. For some reason Rouge was visiting. She had come over for dinner and was in the middle of a conversation with Cream. Amy came in, grabbed an apple and sat at the table. Rouge was in the middle of sentence when she noticed Amy's ring.

"Oooh! What a rock! Did ya' steal it?" Rouge joked.  
"No!" Amy replied defensively.  
"What!" Vanilla had walked into the room and heard the word ''steal''.  
"Amy stole a rock," said Cream, she was a tad bit confused.  
"A rock?" Vanilla was now confused.  
"A diamond!" Rouge corrected.  
"A DIAMOND!" Vanilla and Cream said in unison.  
"No I didn't..." Amy began.  
"Did you get it from Tiffany's? It looks like its from Tiffany's. Wow, it's hard to take one of their stones!" Rouge exclaimed, amusedby her own jesting.**  
** "Amy!" Vanilla was still confused and couldn't believe herears.  
"No.."  
"How many carrots is it?"  
"How could you?"  
"Didn't know you had it in you!"  
"Why!"  
"What!"  
"STOP IT!" Amy yelled loudly and conversation came to a halt. "I didn't steal the ring."  
"Then who did ya get to steal it for you?"" Rouge laughed.  
"Amy, you can't afford a ring like that," Vanilla looked very pale.  
"It's not stolen. Shadow gave it to me." Amy replied.  
"But why?" questioned Rouge.  
"We're getting married." Vanilla Fainted

* * *

"Amy! It's time! The music is starting!" Cream was once again at the door.

"Calm down Cream, I'm ready." Amy pulled her vale over her face and walked out the door.

Shadow stood at the alter. He watched as Amy walked down the isle. She looked pretty in her dress. He smiled. Shadow squirmed in is tux, he hated it. Amy was now standing in beside him. The preacher began the ceremony, but Shadow had difficulty concentrating. What was he about to do to himself? He knew that he would be around for Amy's whole life, but he was immortal, and she would only be around for a fraction of his life. A fraction of eternity. He pushed his doubts aside. He had made up his mind. He looked up at Amy. She looked concerned.  
"Are you sure you want to do this?" she whispered, knowing what he had just been thinking about.  
"Yes," was his reply.  
"But when I''m gone..."  
"For better or for worse," Shadow said, "I do." And he kissed his bride

I hope you all enjoyed! I will update as soon as possible R&R!


	2. Pink and Blue

Chapter two! I want to start off by saying, no offence to you Sonic fans, I like Sonic myslef, so don't get upset. I don't own Sonic and others, credit for them goes to the Sonic Team. I also don't own Lime Coke.

* * *

**A/N: Many think black is the color of evil, but they are wrong. For in truth, the color of evil is pink.**

It was late. The moon was no where to be seen in the sky, but the stars shined bright, making the sky sparkle. Shadow and Amy had just returned to Station Square from their honey moon. They sat on a bench in front of the train station waiting for Vanilla to come with a cab and pick them up. Shadow wasn't to thrilled with the thought of staying with Vanilla and Cream, but that was where Amy lived and Shadow didn't have a decent place to call home. Though the two had an apartment, they would have to wait till morning to move in. Amy, sencing his uneasyness,grabbed Shadow's hand and looked into his eyes.

"Shadow, it will be fine. Don't look so nervous!" Amy teased.

Shadow looked at the ground for a moment then turned back to Amy's gaze. "I just feel that Vanilla doesn't want my presence in her home."

"Now what makes you think that?" Amy insisted.

"She fainted when you told her we were engaged, and she's always preferred Sonic."

Amy shook her head slightly and smiled. "Well, maybe she just finds you too 'dark'. Don't worry, she'll warm up to you! And Cream stopped having nightmares about you along time ago." Shadow grinned a little, but didn't find Amy's joke very amusing. "Shadow, all that really matters is what we think, so don't be so up tight. Even if Vanilla dose like Sonic more than you, I have decided that he is an ugly shade of blue and far to vain for my tastes!"  
Shadow looked up and smiled at Amy's quoting him. He felt a little more at easy. Besides, they were only staying for one night, what's the worst that could happen? Headlights became visible as a car came up the road. Amy stood and stretched as Shadow gathered the luggage. The cab pulled up to the curb and they both climbed in.

The car drive home was relatively quite. Of course Amy was no longer able to call Vanilla's house home, for she would be moving out in the morning. Amy was very happy to see Vanilla, as was Vanilla to see Amy. But Shadow only received a slight nod and a smile from the aging rabbit. After twenty minutes of awkward silence, Amy was able see the house, and as they pulled into the drive way, Cream and Cheese came busting through the door.

"Amy!" Cream yelled with excitement.

"Chao Chao!"" Cheese has always had a way with words.

"Eeeehhh! Cream! I missed you!" Amy gave the little bunny a hug. Though she was no longer very little, Amy would always see Cream as "her little friend".

"Hello Mr. Shadow. I hope you enjoy your visit in our home." Cream said with a bow and a smile.

Vanilla offered them something to eat, but Shadow was exhausted from traveling. He politely turned down the offer of food and went strait to Amy's room. As soon as he opened the door and walked into the room, he was horrified! There was pink everywhere. The walls were pink, the bed was pink, even the chair was pink. Shadows stomach began to feel queasy and his left eye began to twitch. He slowly walked over to the bed and sat down. At least they would only be here for one night in the pink room from heck! There was a slight knock on the door and Amy walked into the room.

"Hey," she said softly. "Are you sure you don't want anything to eat?"  
"Food is over rated," Shadow said with a grin.

"Ha ha ha! Here, I thought you would like a Lime Coke." Ah, how kind of Amy to bring him a bottle of lushes, tasty, thirst quenching Lime Coke. It's red and lime bottle were just the colors Shadow needed to see. He popped the top and slowly pressed the opening to his lips. He was going to enjoy every molecule of the coke that bottle had to offer. Sipping it, the cool, refreshing liquid filled his mouth with an array of flavor. After a moment of bliss, he removed the bottle to express his gratitude.

"Thank you," and he kissed her on the check.

Amy smiled, and with a wink, left the room to chat with Cream an Vanilla some more. Shadow chugged what remained of his Lime Coke, looked around the room and cringed, then laded his head on Amy's soft squishy pink pillow and drifted off to sleep.

As the sun slowly rose, thin raise of light crept through Amy's window, shining in her face and waking her. She looked beside her, but Shadow wasn't there. Amy sat up with a yawn and a stretch. Rubbing her eyes, she sauntered into the kitchen. Vanilla was at the stove serving breakfast and the aroma of bacon and eggs filled the house, making everyone hungry.

"Good morning Vanilla!" Amy exclaimed happily.

"Oh! Amy," Vanilla looked up from the stove, "Your awake! Did you sleep well?"

"Why, yes I did! And thank you for letting us stay here for the night."

Vanilla smiled warmly. "No problem, you can come here anytime."

Amy returned Vanilla's smile and began to look around the room for any signs of Shadow. Seeing none, she turned back to Vanilla. "Have you seen Shadow this morning?"

"Why, yes dear," Vanilla added pepper to the eggs, "I believe he went for a morning run."  
Satisfied with Vanilla's answer, Amy grabbed a cup of coffee and her favorite book. She curled up on the couch closest to the door so she could be sure to be the first to great Shadow when he returned. But after about fifteen minutes or so, Amy had trouble concentrating. Why hasn't Shadow returned yet? Amy closed her book and listened. She heard the squeak of breaks and the screech of stopping tiers. Cream opened her bedroom door and sleepily walked into the living  
room.

"Amy," she said with a yawn, "what is all that noise outside?"

Amy looked at Cream and smiled, "It sounds like the moving van."Indeed it was the moving van. Shadow must of told Tails to ''come on over'' while he was out. She had wanted to wait till after breakfast for the van to come, but it wasn't that big of a deal, and there was no need to get upset. But she was a little irritated. She set her coffee on the table and went out side to greet Shadow, Tails, and, to her surprise, Sonic too.

"Sonic?" Amy said in a distasteful tone, "What are you doing here?"

"Hey ya' Ames!" Sonic exclaimed, "Sally said I should help you and Shad, move into your new apartment since Knuckles wont be able to make it."

"Ok then," Amy looked around, "Where's Shadow?"

"He's In the back of the van," Tails said as he climbed out of the drivers seat. He should be to young to revive a license, but he was a far better driver than any of the others could expect to be. Tails walked Amy to the back of the van and opened it for her. Inside where the few things that belonged to Shadow, a couple of boxes that contained his belongings, and an ugly green chair. Shadow stood up and walked towards Amy. Smiling he jumped to the ground beside her.  
"Hey Ames," he said in his deep voice, "We went ahead and packed what few things I had."  
Amy gave a little grin and then a stern look. "You could have waited till after breakfast."

"I woke up early and went for a run. I figured I'd go ahead and get the van while I was out."  
"Well you would have waited till I woke up. I was a little worried."  
Shadow tried not to smirk. Why would she worry about him? After all, he was the ultimate life form, and he could take care of himself. But then again, he had never had to be concerned with consoling with other people before doing something.  
"Sorry," was all that he said.

Cream, upon seeing Sonic, ran outside and cave Sonic a big hug. This slightly angered Shadow, being that he only received a bow. But then again, he didn't know Cream very well and is would have felt odd if she had greeted him any other way. So he released any feelings of anger.

"Hey Cream!" Sonic said to the rabbit.

"Come on in Mr. Sonic!" the little rabbit grabbed Sonic and Tails by the hand, dragging them both inside.

Sonic and Tails joined them for breakfast, obviously, if there's food, you can't keep Sonic out of it. Conversation was lively at the breakfast table. Most conversation revolved around Sonic, for Sonic was the one to start conversation. He is so vain. Shadow kept quite. As he ate he looked around the table. Vanilla kept smiling at Sonic, and avoided eye contact with Shadow. Amy seemed a upset that Sonic was there, but she tried to enter in conversation out of politeness. Cream didn't say much, but she smiled the whole time and listened to Sonic talk about how great he was. Tails seemed oblivious to Sonic's vanity, but that is why the two were friends. "Amy really use to like me," Sonic said with pride.

Amy's eye's widened, she turned at looked at Shadow, they both began to feel very uncomfortable.

"And you can't really blame her!" Sonic had a big smile on his blue face. "After all, I am quite the lady's man!"

Vanilla giggled and Cream forced a grin, for she could tell that this conversation would only lead to trouble. Amy was begging to feel extremely out of place and was squirming in her chair. At first Shadow felt great discomfort, but that discomfort turned to anger as the self-absorbed hedgehog kept talking.

"I'm really surprised that Amy was able to get over me so quickly!" Sonic kept talking

"I thought she would try a little harder to get me to like her!"

Shadow slid his for under his eggs.

"I am very like able."

Shadow formed his hand into a fist.

"What really caught me of guard was her falling for Shadow of all people!"

Shadow raised his fist over his head.

"At first I thought she was just trying to make me jealous. But some weird couples do exist!"

Shadow's fist went flying down upon the handle of the fork. His eggs went catapulting through the air and landed on Sonic's head.

"Shadow!" Sonic wasn't thrilled with the fact that he had egg's on his head.

"My bad," Shadow said with a grin. "Sorry about that faker."

Sonic developed a look of anger on his face as he picked egg out of his quills.

"Shadow!" of course Vanilla had to stand up for Sonic. "That was uncalled for!"

"It was an accident," Shadow's grin turned into a smile.

Cream and Amy exchanged a look then busted into laughter.

"Sonic!" Amy exclaimed. "You're an EGG HEAD!"

Shadow wasn't quite sure why Amy and Cream were laughing so hard at they're lame joke. But sending eggs flying through the air towards an unsuspecting hedgehog, filled him with great happiness. And with that, the meal was over.

At the end of the meal, they went to Amy's room to gather boxes and furniture. And to Shadow's horror, all the pink stuff was comin'. Shadow tried to confront Amy about all the 'pinkness', but decided to wait till they where alone. This way, if she got upset, it wouldn't make a scene. It wasn't long before the truck was packed, and it was time to say their good byes to Cream, Vanilla, and the pink room of **doom!** Sonic and Tails waved and climbed in the van, as Amy dragged Shadow with her to say their final good-byes to Vanilla.

"That Sonic boy is so nice, don't you think so Amy?" Vanilla questioned.

"Well sure," Amy was startled by Vanilla's remark, "Good bye Vanilla, I'll miss you."  
Amy turned,then waved while walking to the van. Shadow was about to follow, but he stopped and turned to Vanilla.

"Goo-good bye," well he tried. Now how to deal with Amy?


	3. All's fare in love and War

CHAPTER 3! Yes my friends, chapter three is up! Sorry it took so long, its a long chapter and took some time and paticence to write. As for paticence,I ran out of that! But I finshed the chapter, so it dosen't matter! I think this is my best chapter yet! Enjoy! I don't own Sonic and Co., credit must goto Sonic Team and Sega! I also do not own Lime Coke! Credit for that goes to Coke-a-Cola!

**A/N: You never realize how much you love someone or something until you've almost lost it or when its gone forever.**

Shadow began to walk towards the back of the moving van, knowing that there was no room up front. Well this statement wasn't entirely true, for there were three seats up front. But the third seat might as well not existed, for that seat was next to Sonic, the very vain hedgehog. Upon reaching the back of the van, Shadow realized that there was no place for Amy. She could ride in back with him, but she would find the back of the van far to dangerous and be to terrified with the thought of a heave box falling on her head. Shadow paused and closed his eyes in thought. But his concentration was ruined by the sound of Sonic and Amy's voices. Shadow opened his eyes and slowly walked to the front of the vehicle. The window to the passenger side of the beat up old rental van, was partially rolled down. And sticking out of the window, was Sonic's head. He had his usual grin on his face and was in conversation with Amy.

"Where am I suppose to ride?" Amy questioned. Amy folded her arms and formed her mouth into a frown. She often got results with this look. As she was pouting, Shadow walked up to Amy and slid his arm around her waist.

"Chill, Amy," Shadow said in his deep, low voice. "We'll just do some rearranging." Amy seemed satisfied with Shadow's reassurance, and turned her frown into a grin. But the grin quickly curved back down, resuming pouting position when Sonic began to talk.

"No Worries, Ames!" Sonic exclaimed with a thumbs up. "There's one seat left up here. You can ride next to me!" The blue hedgehog patted the middle seat that was between him and Tails.

Shadow immediately took Sonic's 'suggestion' to offence. His body was filled with an unspeakable rage as he slid his arm away from Amy. He walked with angry strides towards Sonic's door. In one swift motion, Shadow yanked the door open, almost tearing it from its hinges, grabbed Sonic by the wrist, swung him over his head and threw him on the ground with a thud. Before the bewildered hedgehog could blink, Shadow helped Amy into the middle seat of the van and slid in next to her. Grinning, he reached for the rusty old van door, pulled it shut, then stuck his head out the window and turned his gaze upon Sonic.

"You ride in back," Shadow spat as blue boy rose to his feet. Amy did her best to hold back her laughter as Tails's eyes widened and Vanilla came running to Sonic's aid.

"Shadow!" the old rabbit exclaimed. " Why did you do that? Sonic are you ok? Shadow you could have hurt him! Poor Sonic! Shadow your reckless!"

As Vanilla continued to rant and rave, Shadow leaned over and began to roll the window up as he smiled at Vanilla. Once the window was up and Vanilla's nagging could no longer be heard, Shadow turned to the two tail fox who was frozen with sock from the display.

"To the apartment, Tails," Shadow demanded grimly. The fox complied and began to inch the impaired van forward. Amy shook her head then rested it in her hands. Shadow grinned happily to himself and watched, or rather he heard, an irritated blue hedgehog run off at the speed of sound, and assumed that he went home. The remainder of the drive was quite and relaxing.

When the three reached the apartment building, and they climbed out of the hard, uncomfortable seats, Shadow's joy transformed into a sour, bitter attitude. For laying in front of that very building, was none other then Sonic the hedgehog.

"Hey guys," Sonic said cheerfully. "What took ya so long?"

What on Earth was he doing here. Shadow was becoming agitated with the menace. The black hedgehog slowly climbed out of the van and walked up to Sonic with Amy closely fallowing behind.

"Sonic," Shadow started to say in a deep and annoyed tone of voice, but abruptly interrupted by Amy.

"Didn't you go home?" Amy was also becoming slightly agitated.

"Well," Sonic began with a grin, "I know you guys need help moving into your apartment, and being the good friend I am, I just had to come and help!"

Shadow shook his head slightly and closed his eyes. He did need Sonic's help to bring in all of Amy's things, but he didn't want it. Where was Knuckles? Wasn't he suppose to help him today? Why had the echidna done this to him? As Shadow stood silent in thought, Amy and Tails went into the apartment building to get the key to Amy's new home from the landlord. As they left, Shadow heard Sonic open the back of the van. Slowly he opened his eyes and turned around.

Shadow looked at the cobalt hedgehog and rolled his eyes. "Where's Knuckles?"

"Huh?" Sonic turned his gaze from the sky towards Shadow.

"Where is Knuckles? He was suppose to help me move into the apartment, where is he?"

Sonic smiled. "Now that's a funny story."

"Just tell me Sonic."

"He and Bat Girl ran off to the Bahamas for their honeymoon after getting hitched in Vegas."

Shadow stared blankly at the blue hedgehog in front of him. So Knuckles and the Rouge had tied the knot. As wonderful as this may be, Shadow turned his thoughts back to why Sonic had returned to help.

"I thought you went home," Shadow stated grimly.

Sonic laughed lightly and began to scratch the back of his head. "Nope! You guys mean so much to me! Besides, you seem a little stressed. Are you having a bad day?" Sonic teased. Shadow rolled his eyes and began to walk towards the building entrance.

"I'll go ahead and unload the truck!" Sonic exclaimed. Shadow ignored the hedgehog and continued to walk. He opened the glass door that was the building's front entrance and headed towards the stairs. Upon reaching the third floor, Shadow sighed and looked down the hall. He didn't want to live in an apartment in the city, he would like to live as far away from people as possible. But this is what Amy wanted, and he loved her and wished her happiness. Shadow grinned. He recalled the look on Amy's face when she first looked at this little apartment. he slowly walked to number 310 and reached for the door handle. Before he could turn the knob, the door was flung open and Amy jumped into his arms.

"Shadow, isn't this great!" Amy had a giant smile on her face. "We finally have a place of our own! Just you and me!" Amy wrapped her arms around Shadows neck. The black hedgehog smiled and pulled his wife closer to him in a tight hug and kissed her on the check. Amy giggled as Shadow carried her into the apartment. Suddenly his expression became a look of horror. Standing there he gasped, and dropped Amy in the floor.

"Ouch!" Amy exclaimed. She looked up at Shadow ready to yell at him for his carelessness. But couldn't do so when observing his wide eyes and look of terror. Amy traded her feelings of anger for ones of concern. "Shadow, what's wrong?"

"Its pink," Shadow said as he nervously jerked.

"Huh?" Amy was confused, what's wrong with the color pink? She herself was a rosy shade of that very color.

"The whole apartment is pink!" Shadow exclaimed for indeed it was. Every wall in the house had been pained a bright rosy color that made him sick to his stomach. He could tolerate living in the city, but he could not, and would not eat, sleep, or use the toilet in a pretty pink room!

"Of course its pink," Amy replied. "I'm not blind!"

"But _why_ is it pink? It was white when we looked at it!" Shadow was having trouble staying calm.

"The landlord said I could have it painted any color that I wanted, so I chose magenta! And I don't see why you have a problem with it!"

"I _hate_ the color pink! It makes me cringe! I can't take all the pink! The couch is pink, the bed is pink. Even the T.V. is pink! And now the whole apartment is pink! What is wrong with you!"

"Me! What's up with you!" Amy could feel the rage rising in her. "Why are you getting so upset over this? It's my apartment and I want it pink!"

"Your apartment? **OUR **apartment!"

"Well whatever, it doesn't really matter! Its pink and its staying that way!"

"AMY ROSE!" Shadow's blood red eyes filled with anger and his hands formed into fists. "I will **not** live in an apartment that is pink! And this house will **not** stay pink! I can't handle it, and it **will change!"**

"**Fine**!" Amy yelled loudly. "But you can do it yourself, and I'm not gonna stick around!" Amy stomped her foot, stormed out of the room, down the stairs, and out onto the street and kept walking. After a few minutes Shadow began to feel bad about yelling at Amy like that, but it was to late to feel sorry now. But he couldn't help it. Shadow frowned and looked across the room to see a two tailed fox with wide eyes and a dropped jaw. Poor Tails had been standing there the whole time.

"Shadow," he said in almost a whisper, "I have never seen you so... angry." This was true. Losing his cool like that is completely out of his character, he normally keeps his emotions hidden. Frowning, Shadow turned to the door and began to leave, he had to find Amy. He would first retrieve a luscious Lime Coke from the cooler.Its refreshing goodness would be just the thing he would need to sooth his fragile nerves. Just one sip, and all his frustration would melt away. Yes, Lime Coke was the answer to all his ills. Oh... then he would search for his dear wife, while drinking the wonderful combination of green lime and sweet coke, and caring another in his spare hand for Amy, knowing that she too loves to sip the glorious liquid which is Lime Coke. Unfortunately Shadow's plans where altered when arriving to the van. Sonic had only removed one thing from the van, a soft couch that was a dark shade of fuchsia. Sonic had also found the cooler containing the Lime Coke, and was lazily lounging on the couch while gulping down the last bottle of Coke with lime.

"Hey Shadow!" Sonic said with a smile. "Mmm Ahh! Coke is refreshing!"

This was the end of whatever was left of Shadow's patience. Sonic had wronged him for the last time! There was no way, Shadow was going to let that mooch come in and come near his Lime Coke. Feeling his explosion of pure anger, Shadow prepared himself for an exertion of his full power. Shadow drew erect, ready for chaos spear. The power serged through his body up toward his left hand. A nanosecond before his fury was unleashed, Amy was brought back to mind. He needed to search for his wife, whom he loved so much. He would deal with this little thief later.

"Which way did Amy go?"

Sonic laughed. "Don't worry Shadow, if she loves you, she'll come back."

"Sonic!"

**BOOM!**

"What was that?" Sonic questioned as he rose to his feet.

"AHHHH!"

Shadow recognized that scream. "Amy!" Before either of the hedgehogs could run to Amy's aid, the Egg Carrier darkened the sky as it hovered over Station Square, blocking the sun and bringing fear to all of the civilians below.

"Muha ha ha ha ha!" Eggman broadcasted his voice over an unseen microphone system. "Sonic and friends, if you ever want to see your little rose friend again, bring me the remaining chaos emeralds at once!" At the end of his transmission, a fleet of robots flew from the Carrier down to the unarmed people below.

"That Egg Head!" Sonic kicked the coach. "We can't give him the chaos! And even if we were, we only have two of the emeralds."

Only two chaos? That's what Sonic thinks. Shadow climbed through the many boxes and items to the back of the vehicle. Carefully he looked among his belonging's for a small black steel box. After retrieving it, he quickly returned to the couch. Setting the box down carefully, Shadow opened it, revealing four chaos emeralds.

"You have the chaos?" Sonic questioned. "Why do you-"

"No time for that now. Get Tails and go help the people in Station Square. I'll save Amy." Shadow removed the green chaos emerald from the box and safely secured the remaining emeralds. Shadow then turned towards the Egg Carrier and began to skate towards the giant air craft. As he ran, Shadow lifted the chaos emerald over his head. "CHAOS CONTROL!" The hedgehog disappeared in a flicker of green light.

* * *

Inside the dimly lighted air ship, was a dark, musty dungeon with six or seven little bared rooms. In the corner of one of these steal cages, was a small rose colored hedgehog. She was holding her knees as close to her chest as she could for comfort and quietly sobbing. For she was too tired and week to do much more than this. Scared and alone, Amy longed to see Shadow, and she hoped that her yelling at him wouldn't prevent this wish. She hope she hadn't driven him away, for they had never really fought before. Sighing she looked up at the robot that was standing just in front of her jail cell, guarding her. It wasn't a very extraordinary robot, being that it was built for the soul purpose of being a guard dog. As Amy turned her view away from the robot and down towards the steel floor, rapid gun fire could be heard just outside the room. Amy leaned forward and listened. The little robot walked away from Amy's cell and towards the door that lead to this horrid prison, and coked his gun. Amy crawled to the front of her cell and peered through the bars, listening. Total silence.

"CHAOS BLAST!" Shadow blew through the door and jumped on the shoulders of the evil machine. Shadow smashed its head in, then jumped to the ground.

"Shadow!" Amy called to her husband as she reached through the bars towards his dark figure.

"Amy!" Shadow ran to his dear Amy. He knelt upon one knee and grabbed her hand. "Don't worry, I'll get you out of here." Shadow released Amy's hand and walked to the bared door. Pulling out his emerald, he blasted the door down. Then, he ran to Amy and scooped her into his arms.

"Shadow," she whispered. Shadow smiled and nuzzled Amy before he kissed her. Amy, now feeling safe, buried her face into Shadow black fur as he ran out of the room and through the hall ways, trying to find a safe way out.

"Mwahahahaha! Hello Shadow!" Shadow turned the corner to find Dr. Eggman hovering in his little floating contraption. And behind him was a giant red and gray robot. The robot was heavily armored and equipped with two humongous guns. (**A/N: Shadow didn't have a gun, the robot did. Shadow would never ever touch a gun!**) "I'm so sorry that you came this far only for you and your little friend to die!"

"I don't think so, Doctor." Shadow said harshly while still clutching Amy in his arms.

"Ha ha ha, well, we'll see about that! DevastatorX2937, crush them!" And with that, Eggman hovered away. The giant robot's eye's blinked red as it stood to its full height and began to bring its fist down upon Shadow.

"Ahhhhh!" Amy screamed loudly as Shadow attempted to dodge the blow. But Devastator still managed to club him in the side and send him and Amy flying. Amy slid down the hall way and into a wall with such force that she was knocked unconscious.

"Amy!" Shadow rose to his feet and tried to run to her side, but the robot fired a missel towards him. The hedgehog pulled out his chaos emerald and dodged the attack using chaos control. Shadow jumped on the beast's head and hit him with all of his might, but it barley dinted the armoire. Shadow began to spin dash the robot, but was only knocked away and pinned to the wall by the robots giant, claw like hand. The robot began to squeeze Shadow with his claws and caused little driblets of blood to run down his sides. Shadow let a small cry of pain escape his lips, causing Amy to ster. Devastator turned his head towards the direction were the injured hedgehog was laying. He pulled his gun up, pointed towards her, and fired. Shadow pushed against the robots hand with all of his might, causing its grip to be loosened just enough for him to run towards the missel and chaos spear it. The impact of Shadow's attack caused the missel to explode, sending chunks of its metal flying and cutting both him and Amy. Shadow simply ignored the pain, but Amy's face showed the ache she was feeling as she shuddered and cried out to Shadow. Devastator ignored Amy, he reloaded his gun's and rapid fired on Shadow. The black hedgehog jumped from missel to missel, turning them around so they would hit his opponent. A total of three bullets where heading towards the robot. The first two he knocked away, but one of these missel's went through the walls and into the engine room, causing it to blow. The third missel hit Devastator directly in the chest, prompting its armor to shader and fall to the ground. The robot began to charge towards Shadow, but the hedgehog began to rapidly chaos spear the machines week point, critically injuring it and knocking it back wards. The damaged robot pulled himself to his feet and fired his last shot. Shadow dodged it as he chaos blasted the metal being, destroying it. The explosion caused from Devastator's destruction, made the ship violently shake and rip apart. Shadow turned and looked at Amy. She was seriously injured and burned. The last missel that Devastator fired must of almost hit her. The air ship was beginning to lose attitude fast, he and Amy needed to get off that ship before it crashed. Shadow began to run towards Amy as the floor began to crack. As he scooped her into his arms a huge explosion forced him to the ground and caused him to drop his bride, who once again, slid away from him. Then a second explosion the caused the floor that Amy was lying on, to give away. Amy fell for the sky down towards the earth.

"AMY!" Shadow shouted as he jumped, without hesitation, through the hole in the ship to his wife. The black hog tightened his body and made it strait so he would descend faster. The wind pushed against his body and greatly hurt his eye's, making him squint. As he got closer to the still unconscious Amy, he forced his right arm in front of him to grab her. Shadow wrapped his hand around Amy's arm and pulled her close to him, hugging her tightly. Before he could think of his next corse of action, he heard the engine of a plan. Shadow saw a wing of the X Tornado zoom in underneath him. With a thud, he landed on the cool steel wing and gripped it tightly with his left hand.

"Thought you could use a lift, Shadow!" Sonic shouted with a grin and a thumbs up. "How's Amy?"

"Not good," Shadow looked at the rosy hedgehog that he tightly held against his body. "She needs a doctor fast!"

"Don't worry Shadow, we'll get her there!" Sonic taped on the cockpit window. "Tails! Hospital, pronto!" Maybe that faker wasn't so bad after all.

Shadow once again looked at Amy, and his heart began to hurt. "Please be ok," he whispered in her ear. "I need you to be ok. Don't leave me here alone. You can't leave me." A single tear rolled down his and was blown away with the wind. Shadow kissed Amy's head, then rested his cheek against hers.

* * *

Amy slowly opened her eyes. _'Where am I_?' she thought. She looked at her arms and saw the needle for her iv, then looked up at the monitor. She hurt all over. Amy carefully turned her head towards the window, it was dark out side. She gathered that she must be at the hospital, but why? That robot...she remembered being thrown across the room, but she must of blanked out after that. She felt something on her leg. Pain shot through her body as she straggled to see what ever it may be. The pain caused Amy to give a little whimper, and her legs to give a little jerk. This motion awoke a sleeping Shadow who refused to leave his wife's side. He sat up in his chair and met Amy's gaze.

"Amy!" Shadow rushed to her side and knelt beside her bed. He carefully brushed her hair away form her eyes and gave her a warm smile. "Your awake."

"Shadow..." Amy began.

"Shhhh," he whispered softly. "You need your rest."

"Shadow, I'm sorry," Amy's eyes began to water. "I'm sorry for running, I'm sorry about the apartment..."

"It's ok Amy," he began to stroke her cheek. "I'm also sorry. I shouldn't have yelled. What's really important to me is you. If you want a pink apartment, you can have it."

"I think... I like white better," the rose hedgehog replied weekly. Shadow gave a little grin. He then looked at the hedgehog. Her body was covered in bandages, scratches, bruises, and burns. She was sure to have a scar on her right leg where it had been gashed with flying metal. The sight that he saw made tears stream down his face.

"Shadow," Amy placed her hand upon his. "What's wrong? I'll be fine. Please don't cry." Shadow couldn't help but cry, for today he realized truly how much it would hurt if he lost Amy. If she would of died, he would once again be alone in the world, lost. He didn't want her to leave him like Maria did. But today had also brought to mind his immorality, and how short Amy's life truly was. He didn't have much time with her in this world, and it pained him. Today made him realize how much Amy's life meant to him, and how much he would pull on his heart to lose her. What had he done to himself? Shadow looked at Amy's worried face, and wiped away his tears. He then made a promise to himself. He would protect and treasure Amy for as long as he could. No regrets. Shadow looked into her emerald green eyes.

"I love you, Amy Rose," Shadow leaned forward and passionately kissed her. He then climbed into the hospital bed with her, and pulled her close. They both fell asleep, hugging each other tightly.

Thank you all who reviewed! I really apreciate it! Your encouraging me! YAY! Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Oh yeah, be fore I forget. My good friend Platonic helped me out with the Lime Coke part. She read it and had to add more details! Thank You Platonic! Thanks again guys! R&R!


	4. Christmas Baby part 1

**Hello every one! I'm updating! I'm sorry it took so long. lots of home work. This chapter isn't aslong as most, but it was a mega chapter, so I broke it up into two parts. Since I already have some of part two done, it won't take me long to update. Please review if you read this story, reviews incourage me! Hope this satisfies your tastes...and if it doesn't, go read a sonamy.**

**I don't own, sonic and co...and amazingly enough, i don'town coke either! **

Outside the air was cold, and a bone chilling wind blew through the sky. Snow was slowly making its way to the icy ground, covering the earth in a white blanket. It was three days before Christmas, and many trains were heading to and from Station Square. Inside one of these small trains, where two hedgehog's in scarves, huddling close together underneath a blanket for warmth. Amy slowly placed her right hand onto the frozen window and let out a sigh. Shadow looked at his lovely wife, smiled softly. The two had been married for three and a half years now, and most of their time together had been happy. After a moment of soaking in her beauty, Shadows' grin faded away as he continued to gaze at Amy. Though it had only been three years, Shadow could already see Amy had aged ever so slightly. Most would hardly notice a tiny wrinkle or the slight change of facile structure , but Shadow noticed everything. Over the years he would watch her in her daily routines and study her as she slept. all the while, in his head, praying and wishing that she would forever stay the same. Stay with him. Through their marriage the ebony hedgehog noticed that Amy's complexion had become a slightly rosier and in the face she looked a little older than she did when the two wedded. Though it was not a drastic change, she looked more like Shadow's older sister rather than his wife. Smiling Shadow pushed these thoughts aside. He couldn't stop Amy from aging, and there was no point in torturing himself with his thoughts. He slowly lifted his hand and placed it on Amy's shoulder. She forced a grin and nuzzled him. Placing her head on his shoulder, she pulled the blanket tightly around her.

"I'm sorry Shadow. I got lost in thought"

"Hmm," he smiled at her fondly. "There's no need for apologies." Amy gave Shadow a second grin, then turned her gaze back towards the tiny window. She had been troubled during the entire train ride home, and found the falling snow some what comforting. Amy turned her head to look at the seats across the isle. In the seats sat a bat with a large, round stomach, and a red echidna, and next to the couple, sat a giant emerald. Rouge and Knuckles also had blankets, and had both fallen asleep while cuddling each other. Amy gave a sad smile, and let out another sigh as she once again placed her head on Shadow's shoulder. Rouge was now pregnant with twin girls, causing her stomach to become large, sticking out farther than normal. Knuckles and Rouge were both very happy about having children, which was why the two where coming to visit their hedgehog friends. Shadow and Amy had gone to the floating island that morning to help their friends pack for their stay. Rouge was nine months pregnant, and the babies where due any day now. The island was hours away from any hospital or birthing center, so Amy invited the two to stay with her and her husband until the babies were born. Amy bit her lower lip and fought back her tears.

"Shadow," Amy said in almost a whine as she lifted her head and starred into his eyes.

"What is it, Amy?" Shadow asked softly, as he met her gaze.

"Shadow, I want a baby." She moaned.

"Oh," Shadow rubbed Amy's cheek. Shadow had been living with Amy long enough to have a sense of her wants and desires. "Amy, I know you want a child," Rouge began to stir and sit up as the train slowly came to a halt. "But now is not the best time for this conversation." Amy looked towards the stretching echidna and sleepy bat. Shadow was probably right. They had guests, it was best to save this conversation for later. Amy returned her gaze to Shadow and nodded her head in agreement. Shadow helped her to her feet and escorted her off the train and to a near by bench. The last thing Amy wanted to do after a 3 hour train ride was to sit on a bench. But she, for some reason, was feeling exhausted and rested upon the bench as Shadow helped load Knuckles and Rouge's things into the waiting taxi cab. As Amy shifted in her seat, the soon to be mother plopped herself right next to Amy and yawned.

"Its so cold outside!" Rouge exclaimed as she rubbed her arms.

"That's funny, because just a minute ago you were complaining about being hot!" Amy teased.

Rouge rolled her eyes in annoyance and began to rub the back of her neck with her hands. "I just wish that these little beings inside me would just be born already! I hate being fat!"

"Oh, Rouge!" Amy laughed. "Your not fat! Pregnant women look so cute with their round tummies!" The pink hedgehog rubbed her old friends stomach with a small laugh. But in a matter of seconds, her eyes developed a sad look and began to water. Rouge noticed the girls change in mood. Reaching over to the hedgehog, she squeezed Amy's shoulder and looked into her eyes.

"Thank you for letting use stay with you, Amy. The babies and I both appreciate it." Amy gave a small grin. Amy had always wanted children, but Rouge had not. At the beginning of Knuckles' and Rouge's marriage, Rouge would proudly tell everyone that she never intended to have children. The bat figured that having children would only slow her down and keep her busy. She would never have time to go for a moon light fly, or steal the occasional jewel or two. When Rouge told Sonic and friends that she was pregnant, the pink hedgehog became upset. Amy figured that if Rouge didn't want children, she wouldn't lover her child or properly take care of it. She herself longed for a baby, and it just didn't seem right for someone such as Rouge to be blessed with children. But it wasn't long before Rouge became excited with the thought of a mini Rouge or Knuckles. In the past, Rouge and Amy didn't exactly get along, they had managed to patch things up a bit, and the nocturnal creature felt pity for the rose hedgehog. Rouge had decided to name Amy the godmother of her children out of pity. As she moved her hand away form Amy's shoulder, Knuckles walked to where the two women were sitting and knelt on the ground in front of them.

"Ready to go, Rouge?" the echidna said as he rubbed her leg.

"Am I ever!" she exclaimed as she pulled her blanket tighter around her. "Its freezing out here!" Knuckles helped his wife out of her seat and into the cab. As she left, Shadow walked over to Amy's side.

"Time to go, Amy," Shadow said as he stuck out his hand to help her up. Amy reached out and excepted his help. As they walked to the car, Shadow slid his arm around Amy's waist. In response, Amy cuddled him close and kissed him on the cheek before sliding into the vehicle.

* * *

The ride home had lifted Amy's mood, she had company! Amy had cleaned the house from top to bottom, wanting it to be perfect. She was some what of a neat freak as is, but now their little apartment shined. The whole ride home Rouge had been complaining about being cold, tired, and hungry. So upon arriving, Knuckles ordered Rouge to take a warm bath. Rouge argued for a few minutes before heading to the bathroom. The thought of a nice hot bath to warm her frozen bones was pleasing, but she didn't like being told what to do, and couldn't help but make a little fuss before complying. After about ten minutes of making sure her guests were comfortable, Amy put on her favorite winter jacket. It was pink coat with a furry trim around the collar. She stopped in front of the Christmas tree as she went to get her keys. The Master Emerald was now sitting on a pile of neatly arranged blankets against the wall, reflecting the colorful Christmas lights. It was beautiful. This truly was her favorite time of year! Spending time with family and friends, and most importantly, shopping.She had gotten behind in her shopping this year, which was highly unusual. But of late she had felt tired, drained. She still had a couple of gifts to buy and not much time to do it. The pantry was almost barren, so she would use buying dinner as cover for gift shopping. Smiling she brushed her hair out of her eyes and turned to Shadow and Knuckles who were quietly sitting on the sofa.

"I'm going grocery shopping, boys," she said teasingly. "Hold down the fort till I get back." As she buttoned her coat and grabbed her purse, Shadow pulled himself out of his seat and walked over to Amy's side. As she looked up from her bag, he kissed her on the lips.

"I love you," he sad as gently as his deep voice would allow. "Be careful, and I'll see you soon."

"Shadow," Amy said almost sternly, but then changed her tone to a more soothing one. "Don't be such a worry wart. I'll be fine." With that she gave Shadow a hug and hurried out the door, leaving the two men alone.

"Heh," Knuckles chuckled softly while sipping the wonderful concoction which is lime coke."Still protective I see." Knuckles said with a stretch. "Relax, Eggman hasn't been seen in years, so its not likely she'll be captured…again. He he he." Ever since that day that the doctor had taken Amy prisoner, and barley making it out alive, Shadow had been reluctant to let his darling rose venture any where without him. But Knuckles was probably right. Sighing, the hedgehog sat next to the echidna and picked up his remote.

"Want to watch the gun show on TV?"

* * *

Amy walked down the busy side walks of the shopping center. She was beginning to feel the? her sorrow returning to her. She had thought that shopping would occupy her, and keeping her mind off of her troubles. Unfortunately, it did the exact opposite. Every corner she turned, there was a pregnant woman, or a mother with her child. Gifts for tots and other reminders of what she couldn't have. The hedgehog even passed a couple of baby clothing stores. Amy stopped, looking through the window of the store she was now standing in front of. "Baby haven", the sign read. Sighing, the rose colored female gazed at the colorful winter coats for small children, and the brightly painted baby cribs. Gifts for tots and other reminders of what she couldn't have. Something deep with in her, made her want to take a look within the building.

'_I suppose a quick peek wouldn't hurt anything.'_ Amy thought to herself. _'Besides, I could get something for Rouge and Knuckle's babies.'_ Amy gave a small nod, agreeing with her thoughts. With a small grin, she approached the store's entrance, and walked inside. Amy was filled with a sense of ah' as she scanned the store with watery eyes. It was a large building, containing bright, happy, bubbling colors of yellow, blue, and pink. Anything that you could possible image that any expecting mother would every need, seemed to be in that store. As she gave her surroundings another look over, the hedgehog spotted a section of books for new parents. Smiling, she walked to the shelves. _'That would be a perfect give.'_ Amy, pleased with her idea, began to rummage through the collection of reading materiel. It didn't take her long to find one that pleased her. Amy began to proceed to the check out counter. But suddenly a wave of exhaustion came over her body. Her eyelids became heavy, as well as her legs and arms. Spotting a reclining rocking chair near in the furniture section, she made the decision to rest for a bit.

Slowly sitting in the chair, Amy reclined and placed her acing feet on the footrest. She would only sit for a few minutes, then she would have to pick something up for dinner.

_Just a …few…moments-_ Amy's eyes could no longer remain open. Dropping the book on the ground, she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

"I'm starving!" complained the white bat as she ran her fingers along the now dry fur of her ear.

"I know dear," Knuckles voice sounded a little agitated. Probably having something to do with Rouge repeatedly giving him the same complaints for the past two hours. "I'm sure Amy will be back soon."

"Well she should be back by now!" Rouge struggled to get out of her chair. Knuckles ran to his wife's aid and helped her up. After gaining balance, Rouge pushed the echidna away and walked towards the door. "Well since she's taking so long, I'm going to fly to the nearest KFC and get me some chicken."

"Rouge!" Knuckles rushed to the door to block her way. "You are in no condition to fly. You need to stay here. I'll go get you some chicken."

"I can get my own chicken thank you! I don't need you to do it for me. I'm pregnant, not sick." Knuckles was getting frustrated with Rouge. Why wouldn't she listen to him? Out of the corner of his eye, the red echidna noticed his host pacing the floor.

"Where is she?" Shadow questioned worriedly. "I should have never let her go alone."

"I'm sure she's fine," Knuckles said as he pulled a struggling Rouge from the door. "Amy's a-AWWO!" Rouge kicked Knuckles as hard as she could in the shin. Hollering, he released his grip and fell to the ground.

"That's what ya' get knuckle head," Rouge smirked. Shadow shook his head. Walking over to the counter, he opened a draw and pulled out a black combination box. Upon opening it, two chaos emeralds where reviled. Rouge was busy fighting with Knuckles, and he hoped she wouldn't notice. Shadow, picking up the purple chaos emerald, closed the box. Returning the other chaos to its designated place, the hedgie headed to the door.

"You two stay her," Shadow order. "I'm going to look for Amy."

"Whatever," Rouge said as she once again pulled away from her husband, who was trying to get her to sit down. Knuckles began to make another attempt to get his wife to rest, but she pushed him away out of irritation, causing him to lose his balance and knock over the floor lamp. Once again Shadow shook his head. Turning back towards the hall way, he skated down the hall and chaos controlled out of the building.

**Thank you all. And please review...I won't wate as long to update!**


	5. Christmas Baby part 2

Blinking, Amy opened her eyes and looked around. Where was she? Turning her gaze towards the ground, Amy noticed the book she wanted to buy Rouge and Knuckles. _"Where am I?" she wondered. _ "_Still in the baby store?" _Looking out the window, the rose hedgehog noticed that it was now dark. She also became aware of the dimmed store lights.

_˜They must be closing_." Amy sat up and placed her feet on the floor, stretching as she did so. The hedgehog needed to get home, Shadow would be worried. Before she could stand up, she noticed a streak of black flash down the street. ˜_Could it be? Shadow?"_ Suddenly a flicker of purple light flashed, and reviled the presence of a black and red hedgie, who was now stood at her side with an unreadable look on his face.

"Amy!" Shadow's emotions were a mixture of anger, worry, and relief. He wasn't one to show his feelings, always trying to hide them. But as he stood before his wife, he was at a loss for words, and didn't know what to do. Taking a deep breath, and dropping to one knee, Shadow settled with exasperation rather than worry or anger. He placed his hand upon hers and looked into Amy's eyes. "Don't ever do this to me again."

"I'm fine, Shadow." A hint of annoyance could be heard in her voice. "Thanks for asking." The black hedgehog released his grip and developed a stern look on his face, and ignored her comment.

"I thought something had happened to you. I shouldn't have let you go alone." Though she was now an adult, Amy half pouted as she leaned back in the chair, slouching, with her arms crossed. "Hmm, I'm not a little girl, Shadow; you can't always follow me around, or keep me locked up in the apartment with you. Don't worry so much. As you can see, I'm perfectly fine." Amy straightened her posture a bit and did a wave motion with her hands out to the side for Shadow to see her unharmed being. Shadow shook his head slightly, then suddenly realized his surroundings. He gave the store a quick look over, afterwards returning his attention to Amy.

"A-a baby store?" his deep voice was barely audible in the empty shop. "What…"

"I noticed few things in the window, they caught my attention," she said in a 'know it all' tone. "I thought there might be something to purchase for Knuckles and Rouge." Lifted the book off the ground, Amy handed it to the confused hedgehog. Shadow starred at the yellow cover for a moment, wanting to believe his wife's words and motives. But something didn't settle right with him.

"Amy is this about…" Shadow began, but was unable to finish, for Amy had placed a finger upon his lips. Raising an eyebrow, the ultimate life form watched Amy's pail face fight back a couple of tears. Shadow gently removed her had from his face, and stroked her arm in concern. "Amy, it's ok." Shadow's words of assurance infuriated her. How could it possible be 'ok?' She shook her head and gritted her teeth.

"No! No,no,no! It's not ok!" Clinching her hand into a fist, she hit the arm of the chair, were she was still sitting. The anger and fire she felt inside, was made apparent on her face. Sweat rolled down the side of her face as feelings continued to churn with in. Shadow pulled himself to his feet, and took hold of Amy's shoulders. Not enough to harm, but just the right amount of strength to keep her still.

"Amy?" For a moment, all was silence. As time progressed, Shadow's gaze remained fixed on Amy. The rose hedgehog breathed deeply as she turned her head away from her husband, a sad attempt to hide behind her quills. Another long pause look place, but Shadows look remained fixed on his wife. The silence was deafening, and could drive any man mad. Shadow remained calm, quite, and still, but it was all too much for Amy. She began to sob. At first quietly, but each gasp of breath became louder, and the tears more frequent. Shadow slowly reached out, and turned her head to face him. Amy stared into his deep crimson eyes, totally braking down.

"I want a baby! I want a baby more than anything else in the world. I want a child to love and care for. I want to teach him to walk and talk. I want to watch him grow. And I want to be a mother!" Amy began to bawl. She buried her face into her husband's soft, smooth fur, and continued to cry her eyes out. Shadow sympathized for his wife. He loved her more that anything else this world had to offer. But truth be told, he didn't really want children. He was more of a loner, and enjoyed the quiet, tranquil feel of his home. And children are loud and demand attention and love. Shadow wasn't one to express his feelings either. He had a hard enough time just pleasing Amy and showing the love he felt towards her. How could he be in charge of a little life that would most likely find him to be cold and cruel, which was how he naturally comes across to many people? Another factor to be considered was his background. He was an experiment, a test subject. He had been Doctor Gerald Robotnik's genie pig. His genes had been altered and toyed with. He wasn't even sure if he could have children. Shadow gently rubbed Amy's back, while think of something calming, soothing to say. Placed his hands on her shoulders, more gently than he had done before, the hedgehog carefully lifted her off his chest.

"I love you, Amy," he began. "I know you want a child, but crying wont help." Amy's bottom lip began to quiver even harder. "You're still young and as beautiful as ever." Shadow brushed the hair out of her eyes. "When you said 'I do', you agreed that we would be together till-till…" Shadow briefly closed his eyes, and then reopened them after a short moment. "Till death do us part. You and I still have plenty of time to have children." Shadow then kissed her forehead and pulled her towards him in a hug. His words calmed Amy and she took them to heart as she with drew from the embrace and wiped any remaining tears from her eyes. Smoothing her skirt out, and taking a few short breaths, the hedgehog began to calm the storm that had been boiling inside her for sometime now. She knew Shadow cared about her, and he seemed as though he understood her pain. Amy gave a small grin and straitened her hair. Turning, she noticed that her book had once again fallen to the floor. She picked it up and ran her hands over the lettering on the cover. Amy was now completely calm or close to it anyway. Still, something continued to bother Shadow.

"Amy, why were you sleeping in a recliner at strange store?" This question had been nagging at him since the moment he saw her through the shop's window. And he now asked this inquiry without hesitation. Amy tried to compose a reasonable answer, but came up blank. Amy turned her attention to her hands, examining them carefully.

"I-I don't know," she stated plainly. "I just suddenly became exhausted. I could hardly move, or keep my eyes open." This only caused Shadow to worry more. For Amy had been displaying strange behaviors for almost a month now. She had become depressed and quite, felt tired often, and ate at odd times of the day. Shadow had assumed that this behavior had come about because of Amy longing for motherhood, and figured that it would go away in time.

"Amy," Shadow took her hands in his, "maybe you should see a doctor." The rose hedgehog wasn't thrilled with the idea. She had no desire to wait in a small room for hours, only to be told 'they could find a problem, but they'll schedule another appointment.' Normally she would have put up a fuss, but all of her crying had left her exhausted. Amy no was no longer in a bickering mood. Besides, tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and every doctors office in Station Square would be closed. Amy knew that because of the busy holiday season, she wouldn't be able to see a doctor for a couple of days. So save energy, Amy simply complied with a small nod of the head. The corner of Shadow's lips gave a slight curve upward, forming a small grin. Feeling he had won and that soon life would return to normal.

"Excuse me," both hedgehogs could hear a male voice approaching them. They turned to see a young man around the age of 19, with blond hair and glasses. "We're closing shop." He pushed his think spectacles higher up on his face. "I'm going to have to ask you to get out of my father's store, please."

The walk home with Shadow lifted her mood a bit. Amy had always enjoyed talking with him. His intellectual conversation intrigued her, as he spoke to her in a calm, sweet manner. This particular walk brought memories back to Amy of when the two were dating. As long as he loved her, she could cope. Approaching their apartment door, Amy pulled out her keys and unlocked the front door while Shadow balanced the chicken in his arms. (They had made a quick pit stop at KFC) As they walked into living room, both expected to see an angry Rouge and displeased Knuckles, arguing, just they way they were when Shadow left. But that wasn't the case. Upon entering the living room, Amy's jaw dropped. The lamp was still on the floor from when Knuckles fell into it, and magazines were scattered about, for Rouge had used them as projectiles to through at her loving husband. The rugs were scrunched up, and the left side of the coffee had been moved forward slightly, as if someone had tried to push it out of their way as they fled from war. The apartment was clearly a mess, but when Amy turned her look away from the living room that she had spent many long hours in cleaning and toiling away in, she turned her gaze from all that surrounded her, and looked at the couch. On the soft and still pink sofa, were Knuckles and Rouge. Knuckles was leaning against the arm and back of the love seat, and Rouge laid next to him, curled into his chest. The echidna's arm rested upon the bats waist as the two sighed softly and watched the ten o'clock news. Rouge suddenly noticed the presence of there hosts, and struggled to sit upright. She smiled, and then began to open her mouth as if to say something (most likely a smart aleck remark) but as she did so; the aroma of chicken filled the air, and caused her eyes to widen.

"Food!" she exclaimed. "It's about time you brought some grub home. I'm starving! I'm eating for three you know. I could have…" Shadow was beginning to become slightly irritated with Rouge's complaints, so the hedgehog interrupted the bat, hoping to silence her whining.

"Hmm," he started. "We should probably eat; the chicken will get cold if we don't." He sat the buckets of meat on the counter and reached into a KFC bag. "We also bought potatoes." Rouge licked her lips and rushed over to the table. Amy gave a small snicker and fallowed. She would worry about cleaning later, food sounded good right about now. As she ventured towards the super table, Amy paused before the beautiful tree and shinning emerald once more. A smile crept onto her face. She was determined to enjoy the rest of the holiday season. But now it was time to enjoy a warm meal and friends.

After all that complaining, Rouge only ate one chicken leg and half of a mashed potato cartons. Shortly downing her meal, the bat leaned back in her chair with a satisfied stomach, watching everyone else eat. For a few minutes there was nothing but silence, but it didn't take long for Rouge to get irritated with Knuckles'

Eating habits. The echidna didn't have any meat on his plate, just some bread, a helping of potatoes, and a hand full of grapes from Amy's refrigerator. As Knuckles reached for another grape, he knocked three onto the floor.

"Be careful you klutz!" Rouge shouted at her husband in annoyance. "You're always making messes!"

"Rouge…" Knuckles developed a look of irritation on his face. Shadow and Amy looked from their plates and across the table at the two, but quickly turned their gaze back towards their food. The hedgehogs shifted awkwardly in their chairs, knowing that an argument was about to take place.

"Well pick it up you clumsy oaf!" Rouge folder her arms as best as she could above her stomach and stuck her nose up at him.

"That's what I'm trying to do bat girl!" Knuckles bent over to pick up the grapes, but Knuckles had big hands, and as he did so, he managed to knock his glass of grape juice into her lap. Rouge let out cry of shock as the cold drink soaked her white pants. Shadow and Amy's eyes widened as they slowly scooted their chairs back.

"OOPS," the red echidna said almost in a whisper. Rouge abruptly stood up, turning to her still sitting husband.

"Err! You freak!" The bats fur was starting to stand on end as she clenched her fists.

"Says the woman with the big belly…I mean…" Shadow and Amy dropped their jaws in disbelief at Knuckles' response.

"Ooooh! I'll make you eat those words!" Though she was pregnant, Rouge was still able to bring her foot up high enough to kick the creature that she married in the face, causing him to fly out of his chair and into the wall. He quickly picked himself off the ground and raised his fist.

"Know see here woman!" His face became red with anger, but Rouge was already flying towards him, ready for action.

"Should I call the police?" Amy questioned.

"No," Shadow started, as he ducked, avoiding a soaring couch cushion. "They wouldn't be able to do much of anything."

"Calm down, Rouge!" Knuckles rolled across the living room, avoiding a blow.

"Not so fat now am I?" Rouge began to move towards her 'opponent', but suddenly wrap her arms around her stomach.

"Rouge?" Knuckles took a step towards her, but she took a step back, and let out a small shriek of pain.

"I'm sorry, Rouge!" the echidna ran towards her, placing his hands on her shoulders. "What's wrong? I didn't mean to…"

"No you fool! Ahg!" Rouge grabbed his arm for balance and gritted her teeth. "The babies!"

"OH NO! OH NO HO NO OH NO!" Knuckles became jittery, and his eyes were wide. Without realizing it, he pulled away from his wife and began to run around in circles.

"Knuckles, AH!" Rouge let out another gasp of pain as Amy helped balance her.

"NO! OH NO!" The panicked echidna ran to his hedgehog friend and grabbed his arms. "SHADOW! What should we do! Help me!" Shadow raised an eyebrow, then looked towards Amy and Rouge.

"We better get her to the hospital. Amy, have you seen my chaos em…" Before he could finish, Rouge produced the purple emerald he had used earlier from her waist band pocket.

"You… should really keep a better… track on these things." The bat managed a grin, but her knees buckled and she almost fell to the ground, and dropped the emerald on the floor. "Ack!"

"Rouge don't die!" Knuckles released his grip on Shadow and ran back to Rouge.

"Knuckles!" Amy was becoming irritated as she struggled to pull the laboring woman off the ground. Her quills began to fall in her eyes and she appeared very cross. "Get a hold of yourself! Now get over here and help the woman up!" As the uneasy red spiny anteater complied and pulled his wife from the ground, Shadow picked the powerful gem from the ground. The hedgehog slid his right arm around Amy's waist and with his hand, got a good grip on Knuckles and Rouge. Flinging his arm over his head, he tossed the emerald in the air then caught it, and brought it down directly in front of him with his arm parallel with the ground.

"CHAOS CONTROL!" and they all disappeared in a flicker of light.

A bright flash filled the hospital waiting room. Staring, the patient and the nurses at the front desk were taken back by the blinding illumination. Suddenly, two hedgehogs, a bat, and a fidgety red echidna stood before them. An old nurse with dark, tan skin, and long gray hair that was pulled back into a plate on her head, slowly rose from her chair.

"Can I help you?" she asked with a wavering country accent. At the sound of her voice, Knuckles jerked his head forward and starred at her. Though it didn't seem possible, his eyes became even wider, as he ran towards the desk and stretched towards the counter, but the old woman still had to lean forward to see him.

"You've got to help me!" his breaths became shorter. "MY BABY'S HAVE'N A WIFE!" The nurse raised her brows, and Amy rolled her eyes. After handing Rouge over to Shadow, she walked up to the desk.

"What he means ma'am is ˜his wife is having a baby." The wrinkled woman looked at the bat whom still had one hand on her stomach and was now taking deep breaths through her mouth. Seeing this, she turned to the two nurses on either side of her.

"Sara, take the bat to a labor room, I'll call the youngn's doctor," she turned and looked at Knuckles again, the turned to face the other nurse. "Krystal, you better take him and calm him down before he blows a gasket."

Rouge's doctor, Dr. Legolas, rushed to the hospital, and to her patient's aid. Unfortunately, it was a false alarm. But since she was there, the good doctor decided to go ahead and check the babies out with an ultra sound. As she set up the machine, Shadow took the slightly calmer echidna outside for a bit of fresh air and an apple juice. Amy stayed with Rouge and watched the image of two little girls on the monitor that was before them.

"Well everything checks out," Legolas said. "Your girls are perfectly healthy." The doctor scribbled a few things onto her clip bored then slid the pen into her curly blond hair, holding it back from her face. Rouge smiled, and turned to look at Amy, who had become slightly depressed again. Struck with and idea, the bat smirked, and then once again faced the human woman.

"He Doc," she began, "I know Amy's not pregnant, but how about letting her see what an ultra scan is like?" upon hearing Rouge's request, Amy's ears perked up and a smile spread across her face.

"I don't know, Rouge. That machine isn't meant for entertainment." Dr. Legolas turned her gaze to the hedgehog, and saw the pleading in her eyes.

"Just this once?" Rouge persisted.

"Oh, all right. But just this once." Legolas place her clipboard on a desk and pulled out a fresh pair of gloves. "Hurry up and get out of the bed. I haven't got all day."

Within a couple of minutes, Rouge and Amy had switched places. Though she wasn't sure why, Amy was excited. She might not be expecting, but at lease she could know what its like to have an ultra sound. The kind doctor spread the petroleum jells onto the hedgehog's rosy stomach. After resetting the machine, Dr. Legolas slid the devise across Amy's tummy. Amy stared at the monitor, it showed nothing. Sighing somewhat happily, Amy starred at the ceiling.

"That's strange," Dr. Legolas pulled a pair of spectacles out of her white coat pocket and placed them on her nose.

"What?" Amy's head shot towards the monitor, and Rouge squinted in an attempt to see a little better. "What is it?" Was something wrong? Did she have a stomach ulcer? Or cancer? Could an ultra sound even tell you that? The doctor seemed to be ignoring her, but after a couple of minutes, she let out a small giggle.

"Well I'll be!" Removing her glasses from her head, the fair skinned woman faced the confused hedgehog. "Amy Rose. You are three and a half months pregnant."

After about forty-five minutes, Shadow had finally calmed Knuckles down… maybe calm wasn't the right word, but he wasn't nearly as spastic. One of the black hedgehog's characteristics was his ability to keep calm in situations that others couldn't. But tonight he had truly been tested, and at one point of the night, almost lost it. Leaning against the outside wall of the hospital building, Shadow coolly sipped a lime coke. He gazed with embarrassment at the ridiculous sight of his echidna friend. Knuckles was hunched, like a child, over a pile of empty Juicy Juice sip-ups as he slurped the last drop of his last grape juice. For he had finished off the apple long ago. As he slowly came to his senses, the red creature turned his head and scanned the streets, then slowly began to rise from the filthy, cement sidewalk. Clearing his throat and deepening his voice, Knuckles turned to Shadow.

"He-um…err…Sonic didn't …you know…come by? By any chance?" Knuckles scratched the back of his head and tried to force a smile, but ended up making himself look even more pathetic. Shadow couldn't help but grin.

"No," he began in his deep mysterious voice. "But the news crew came by. And they would like to let you know that they have plenty of pictures for the front page of the morning paper."

"WHAT?" Knuckles' eyes widened once again and he began to loose color in his face. "They did? Oh no! Why? My life is ruined!" Shadow chuckled and glanced at Knuckles sideways. By this, the echidna realized he was merle jesting, and shot him a glance of hatred as he mumbled and clinched his fists.

"Come one Knuckles," Shadow said over his shoulder as he walked to the hospital entrance. "Pick up your mess and come inside. Your wife is waiting for you." The hedgehog laughed again as he entered the dingy, white waiting room. He looked over at the service desk to see Rouge talking to the old nurse again and checking herself out of the hospital. But where was Amy? Shadow did a thorough scan of the waiting room, and almost missed the image of a pink hedgehog walk out of a hospital room with pamphlets in hand and a giant smile on her face. With confusion, Shadow quietly waited for Amy to exchange words with Rouge's Doctor? Knuckles had some how managed to call a cab and was now helping Rouge into the vehicle. Amy shook hand with Dr. Legolas before she turn to look for her husband. Upon seeing her husband, a huge grin spread across Amy's face. This slightly confused Shadow, for not to long ago she had been terrible upset. He just shrugged it off and returned the grin. But what Amy did next really surprised him. She started laughing. A sweet, smooth, giggle that he hadn't heard in months.

"Shadow!" Amy shouted as she ran across the room and jumped into his arms. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Shadow, still confused, returned her hug and waited for Amy to explain herself.

"Oh, Shadow! I'm pregnant!" Amy giggled again and gave her husband another tight squeeze.

"….Your what?" How could this be? What did she mean?

"I'm going to be a mother! He he! I'm having a baby!"


	6. Love Spats

**Hello fello fancition friends. I have finalycompleated my next chapter! I apologize that it took so long. I have been bussy, I and I will try to have the next chapter up with in 2 weeks. Key word being try. Please read and enjoy**

**disclaimer: I, Echidna Girl, do not own Sonic and friends... though I should. Because if I did Sega would be producing better Sonic cames, and Shadows evil little demonic game would be way diffrent! The little beast wouldn't have a gun! ...oh yeah... sega and Sonic team owns they... yay...**

The entire car ride home was filled with giggles of joy as Amy bubbled with happiness. Rouge joined in with many 'congratulations' and 'I told you sos'. Knuckles had managed to recover his nerve, and let out a few grunts, nods, and grins throughout the conversation. As these happenings proceeded, Shadow quietly set next to Amy, with one hand on her knee, the other resting in the seat, and a lost stare formed on his face as he gazed throw the cab window.

"Isn't it great?" Amy leaned over and nuzzled Shadow's chests. The hedgehog turned to his wife, and half forced a pleased grin.

"Hmm," he gave a small knod. "Of course it is." Normally Amy would make a fuss of her husband's lack of interest, but tonight, she hardly noticed. She was so caught up in her own excitement, that she would have expressed her joy to Sonic if he had been there. The car ride continued for another five minutes. Shadows thoughts were once again interrupted as they piled out of the car and up the stairs to a warm apartment, cold chicken, and half empty bottles of Lime coke. Within fifteen minutes, the echidna and bat were snug in there rooms, and Shadow was laying on his side as Amy climbed into bed. The pink hedgehog rolled over to her husband and gave him a squeeze.

"Thank you, Shadow!" Amy lightly kissed his check. "This was the best Christmas present ever." She gave him another hug, then turned off the light, fluffed her pillow, and snuggled up in her blanket. "I love you, Shadow." Amy yawned as she closed her eyes.

"I love you, too." All was quite, Shadow rolled onto his back, staring into the ceiling, lost in thought. A baby. A baby? Amy was having a baby? Though he was happy for her, this just didn't make sense to him. How could this be? For almost a year now, he had been telling Amy that one day she would have a child of her own, but he had never actually believed it.

Fifty years ago on the ark, Shadow and been sitting next to Maria on the observation deck, watching the beautiful blue planet bellow that was called Earth. Shadow recalled that day as he slid his hands behind is head and continued to study the sealing. The two had just finished playing a game of hide-n-seek, and were both tired after running through the entire space station in search for the perfect hiding place. After a few moments, Maria sighed. Shadow turned his head towards the beautiful young girl, and placed his gloved hand upon hers.

"What are you thinking about Maria?" Shadow often questioned her. At this point in his life, he craved knowledge, and wanted to know all that he could about the planet his dear friend loved so much. Maria smiled and brushed a strand of blond hair away from her eye.

"Families Shadow," she gave a slight nod. "I'm thinking about all the families that are going about their lives of work and play." The curios hedgehog raised an eyebrow. They had never discussed this subject before.

"Explain." At this Maria giggled. Were most would find questions such as these to be irritating, and that information of the sort be apart of common knowledge. The little Robotnick found his intuitiveness to be cute, and entertaining. Turning, she grabbed a picture book from one of the stacks resting on the ground behind her. The two friends scooted close together, and rested the book between them, so both could see the colorful pictures. Shadow opened the book, and Maria turned the first page. The black hedgehog stared intently at the image of three humans. One was a woman, with long blond hair, fair skin, and smiling blue eyes. She was sitting on a bench, and resting on her knee was a small girl at about the age of three. The toddler shared many of the woman's features. She too had blond hair and fair skin. But instead of being straight, it was short and curly, with a green ribbon resting in her locks of hair. Standing behind the two females, was a tall man. His skin, though fair, had a darker tint to it. He had thick brown curly hair and was leaning forwards as to talk to the small girl and the older woman. After taking in the image, Shadow once again turned to Maria.

"What does this mean?" Smiling fondly, she rested a fragile hand on the book.

"This is an example of a family, Shadow. On earth, humans fill a need to be with other humans, and need the safe, collective feeling of a family. Though families come in all different shapes and sizes, most are made of a mother, a father, and a child." Maria paused and looked at Shadow, be he was still intently looking at this 'family', so she continued. "A mother," she pointed at the blond woman, "Takes care of the home and family. She show's lots of love and teaches her child right from wrong. A father," she now moved her finger to the tall man "Supports his family. He goes to work every day and brings home money. He also loves his family and protects and takes care of them. Just like a mother, he is supposed to be loving and kind." Once again Maria paused to give Shadow time to sort his thoughts. After a few minutes, the young girl proceeded. "And then there's the child. After you have a mommy and a daddy, you can have a kid." She was now pointing to the small blond toddler. "The parents take care of the child and help him or her to learn and grow." Now though with her explanation, Maria leaned back ready for more of Shadow's questions.

"So families are groups of people who live happily together?" Shadow pulled the book all the way into is lap, never taking his eyes off the page. He noticed that they were all smiling, and seemed to be having fun.

"Well yes, I suppose that's a good way to sum it up."

"And children are the female and the male's offspring?" Maria giggled at the hedgehog's technical thinking.

"Yes." Shadow now turned completely around so he could talk to his friend face to face.

"You mentioned that families come in different shapes and sizes?" He continued to probe her mind for answers.

"Why yes! Not all families are the same. Some families have one child, some have five. Some kids only have a father, while others only have a mother. And some children have no parents at all and live with their grandfather and a loving little hedgehog."

"You, the professor, and I are a family?" Shadow's eyes shined with excitement at the though of being apart of a smiling happy family with Maria.

"Of course!" she giggled happily and hugged him tightly. "We look out for each other and take care of one another don't we?" Maria loosened her grip as the ultimate life form gave a small nod. "Then we are a family, that's what a family is."

"And we're happy." He added with pleasure.

"That's right, we're happy." The two chatted for another ten minutes, and then slowly rose to their feet. "It's about lunch time Shadow." Maria dusted off her favorite blue dress.

"Then let us go eat." Shadow took hold of her hand and led her to the cafeteria.

Shadow looked over at Amy. She was sound asleep. With a low moan, the genetic experiment rolled out of bed and dragged him to the kitchen. He needed something to calm his nerves. Upon reaching the small kitchen, he approached the gray whirlpool refrigerator and tugged the door open.

"Drat." No lime coke. How he longed for the sweet bubble goodness. The distinct flavor of coke had a way of redirect ones focus from his or hers problems to its refreshing and satisfying flavor. And with the after taste of lime, it relaxed you, and made your taste bud's dance with excitement as its tingling taste washed down your throat and restored ones sanity. "Oh well." Shadow pushed a bottle of ketchup aside and reached for an almost, but not quite, satisfying ginger ale. "Coke has a lot of caffeine any ways." With his nice, cold, not very interesting Ginger Ale, Shadow walked over to the sofa and slouched in its soft cushion, sorting his thoughts as he sipped the Lime Co-…. Oh… I mean ginger ale.

Shadow wanted to be happy for Amy, he really did. In a way he was, but what did this mean? Was he to be a father? Yes, of that he was sure, but how could that possible work? As Maria had told him, fathers were loving and happy. Like the man in the picture with the huge smile on his face. He sat for fifteen minutes with this very thing in mind. But then it occurred to him. Providing for the child is something he was sure he could do, but how would his baby turn out? Every action that Shadow made, would help mold and develop his son or daughter. In most cases, children turn out a lot like their parents. So what does that mean? That his offspring would become cold hearted and dark? Would he or she shut their feelings up? Cause fear because of their naturally cold tone and disposition? He didn't want that. **His** spawn would not struggle and be with drawn as he was. It only made life hard, and that's the last thing any young being needs.

Shadow's eye's slowly became heavier and heavier. His head was still spinning with thoughts (if he had a Lime Coke that wouldn't have happened). He downed the last of his soft drink, the sauntered back to his bedroom. Climbing into bed, Shadow pulled the sheets up to his cheek and went slowly drifted off to sleep. He would save his problems till tomorrow. Besides, it would be a while before the baby was actually here. Sleep filled his eyelids and didn't allow them to reopen till morning.

Shadow was in a dazed state, enjoying the dimly lighted room, as he snuggled into his pillow, and his blanket lay loosely on his back. The black hedgehog continued to lay in bed with his eyes closed. He wasn't quite ready to greet the world on this lovely Christmas Eve. Just as he was about to drift back to sleep, a certain pink hedgehog walked into the room humming Christmas carols as she made her way to the bed.

"Look at you!" she giggled happily. "Sleeping the morning away. Get up dear." There was a slight pause, but Shadow decided to just ignore her. Maybe she would just go away, and then could catch a couple more winks. Amy had other ideas though. Since her loving husband was having trouble waking up this morning, she would have to assist him. There where two windows in hers and Shadows bedroom, one on each side of the bed. Amy went to the window on her side, carefully pulling back the curtains; she allowed the light to pour into the room. With his eyes still closed, he wrinkled his brow and buried his face deeper into his cozy pillow. Why wouldn't the pesky woman just go away? Amy shook her head slightly and let out another giggle.

"Come on Shadow. Wake up honey." Ug. Why is she sweet talking him? All he wanted was a couple more hours of rest. Amy now went to the other window, and pulled back the curtains just as she did before. Now the suns rays were directly in Shadow's face. He moaned and pulled the sheets over his head.

"Oh, Shadow." Some of the glee hand left her voice, for she was becoming agitated. "Wake up." Amy poked at the sheets, but this only caused him to roll over a bit. Amy traded her look of pleasure for a look of anger. Her brow lowered and she stared the bed down. "WAKE UP YOU LAZY HEDGEHOG!" Amy bellowed as she ripped the sheets and blankets away from Shadow, who shivered as the cool air made contact with his skin. Shadow moaned and began rubbing his eyes.

"I'm up…. I'm up" he moaned as he rolled onto his back and sat. At these words, Amy's pleasant disposition immediately returned.

"Good morning sleepy head." She said with a smile. "Your breakfast is getting cold." Shadow slowly pulled himself out of bed, and Amy escorted him to the kitchen where Knuckles sat eating toast and strawberries. The echidna had slight rings under his eyes, but didn't appear tired. Shadow slid into his usual spot at the table, where eggs and bacon awaited him. Though he wasn't hungry (and almost never was) the spiny creature nibbled at his meal, to prevent Amy from pitching any fits. A acquired silence filled the kitchen and Shadow sleepily push food around his plate, Amy went about cleaning the counters, and Knuckles finished his last bite of toast and tried to find a place in the kitchen to fix his eyes on.

"Well," Knuckles paused to clear his throat, "um, I'm going to go see in Rouge is ready to go." The echidna wasn't sure why the room was filled with discomfort and silence, but he wanted out of there fast. He quickly pushed back the chair and stood up.

"Get ready?" Shadow questioned. His guests comment caught his attention.

"Thanks for breakfast, Amy." And with that Knuckle retreated to his room leaving to two hedgehogs alone.

"You better hurry up and get ready also, Shadow." Amy said with a smile as she turned to her husband.

"Get ready? For what?" Amy giggled at his question as she washed her hands.

"For Sonic and Sally's Christmas party of course." No! Not the party. Out of all the things Amy could drag him to, the last place he wanted to go was to a cheerful holiday part hosted by his blue counterpart.

"But I thought we weren't going. I thought you didn't want to go." Shadow insisted in his deep, sinister voice.

"I…I didn't." Amy paused, then slowly laid the dish towel she was holding on the counter. "But Rouge and Knuckles wanted to go. And since Rouge is pregnant, and a guest in our home, the polite thing to do is accompany them. On top of that, Sally is trying to make amends."

"I don't want to go." Shadow said in a cold, hard tone. Amy was starting to become slightly angry with her dear husband, but kept a slight smile on her face.

"Aw, come on, Shadow." She placed hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. "We'll get to tell everyone about the baby at once." Placing her other hand on her stomach, her smile broadened.

"What?" Shadow jumped out of his chair, still looking at Amy. "We have to tell people?" This question made the pink creature cross, and rage could be seen in her eyes.

"Of course we're going to tell people, Shadow! That's what you do when you have a baby! It's a time of joy! Now be joyful and get ready for the party!" she was practically yelling now, and her fists were clinched.

"I'm not going." Shadow folded his arms and narrowed his eyes. He was the ultimate life form. No one could make him do anything! Amy, however, thought other wise.

"SHADOW! **We** are going to this party, and **you** will be happy about it!" Amy was now screaming at her husband, who simply folded his arms and closed his eyes as he gritted his teeth.

"I will not go Amy Rose Hedgehog, and there is no way you can persuade me other wise."

"And why not! Why can't you just be happy for me!"

"Because I don't want this child!" With this comment Amy took a step back, and tears filled her eyes. Shadow noticed slight movement from the corner of his eye, turning to look; he saw Knuckles and Rouge, in Christmas attire complete with dropped jaws and wide eyes. Knuckles shook the shocked look from his face and let out a series of coughs.

"Well…err….uh…we're…ready to go?" Amy bit her lower lip as she glanced at Knuckles then turned back to Shadow.

"We're not going!" She exclaimed as she burst into tears and ran into her bedroom, slamming the door shut behind her. Shadow took a deep breath and hit the table with a clenched fist, making the cups and glasses spill there contents on the floor. Exhaling, he turned to the echidna and bat.

"I'll drive you there," Shadow stated firmly nodding slightly, the two headed out the door, Shadow sauntering along. The hedgehogs did have a car. It was a small Toyota that Amy had gotten many years ago for her sixteenth birthday. But the old machine was nothing other than a nuisance to Shadow, so they normally took a cab. The three pilled into the car and buckled in (all except for Knuckles; his seatbelt was broken). Not a word was uttered during that car ride, and Shadow felt numb, tired, and angry as he navigated to Sonic's house. After a good twenty minutes that felt like eternity, the rusty vehicle slowed to a stop in front of a large two story house. Shadow put the car in park and looked at the two passengers through the review mirror.

"I'll pick you up in two…"

"Hey, Shadow!" Sonic exclaimed as he and Sally made their way to the car. "Glad you could make it." This is the last thing he needed, another thorn in his side.

"Hello, Sonic." He said dryly. Knuckles was now standing outside of the automobile, and assisting Rouge with her exit. Sally quickly ran to his side in hopes of helping. Once Rouge was on her feet, the Chipmunk-squirrel gave the car another go over, realizing it was short one passenger.

"Were is Amy?" she asked with concern.

"I'm afraid she couldn't make it." Shadow began to put the car in drive.

"Huh?" Sonic scratched the back of his head. "Aren't you coming in?"

"No."

"Since you're already here, why don't you come in for a couple of minutes? Maybe enjoy some refreshments?" Sally was now at his window, next to the blue nuisance.

"No thank you, Sally Hedgehog. I must be getting home." With that he inched the car forward and slowly headed home.

Shadow quietly walked into the apartment. There were no signs that Amy had emerged from her chambers yet. Slowly, he head to the bedroom door. Upon reaching it, Shadow stood there for a moment, and then leaned forward, placing his ear on the door. He heard muffled sobs, and soft muttering. Amy was most likely lying on the bed with her head buried into a pillow. Why was she doing this! He didn't mean to hurt her, but she didn't have to do this to him! Besides, it was her fault. If she hadn't wanted a child so bad, he wouldn't be in this mess. Regardless of her longing, he had made sacrifices for her. Given up some of his solitude, moved into the city, he even let her keep the pink sofa! Why, just for this once, couldn't she have abided by his wishes and not want a child? Not that it mattered; it was too late for that now. She was already pregnant, and a child is coming. Shadow closed his eyes, allowing his feeling to continue to churn as he attempted to sort his thoughts. He missed the joy he and Amy use to have together. Her smile filled him with a feeling that he couldn't possibly begin to describe. Then he recalled the aching pain that griped his chest when he saw her suffer. This past year had been filled with days of torture for him. Amy hardly every smiled, and when she did, it was out of politeness, done half heartedly, and he hated to see her so depressed. A smile creped onto the hedgehog's face, as he recalled the delight that was expressed on his wife's face after she found out about her pregnancy. Sadly, Shadow's joy quickly faded upon remembering the current problem at hand. The only thing he was absolutely certain of was that he loved Amy, and cared for her with all of his heart. He had to try and mend their relationship. Besides, the baby wouldn't be along for a while, and he had to live with Amy now. Shadow let out a sigh as he lifted his head and began to talk to his wife through the door.

"Amy," he said softly. Shadow heard the sheets rustle and her sobs shorten as she tried to catch her breath. "Amy… can we please talk?" There was a brief pause, and the air on both sides of the door felt thick. Listening carefully, Shadow heard the rustling of bed sheets, the patting of feet on the carpet. Slowly the door knob turned, and Amy's face slowly came into view. The hedgehogs face was pale, practically white. Her eyes were swollen from all her crying and her cheeks were soaked with tears. Amy's complexion almost resembled that of a ghost; and this pain Shadow. For a moment, he just stared at her, with soft eyes, wanting to caress, hold, and comfort her. But he never did, he stood in silence, and observed the pain on her face.

"Why?" Amy asked breaking the silence. "Why are you doing this? Why don't you want this baby?' Amy fought back tears as she forced herself to talk.

"Amy…" Shadow took a step closer, now standing under the door frame. ", you don't under stand."

"What do you mean?" This time when she spoke, Shadow could since the venom in her voice, how ever slight it may be. "I want this baby more than any thing else in this world… and you can't even stomach the thought of being a father!" Once again, Amy's eye's swelled with tears.

"You don't understand."

"Understand? What is there to understand? We are having a baby, and you are afraid of responsibility!" Amy bit her lip upon mentioning the baby.

"No… will you just listen…we have no idea what kind of child this infant will be…"

"He will be our child Shadow! Yours and mind!" Amy was beginning to shout.

"The child might be a freak!" Shadow took two more steps into the room, and Amy backed up.

"He will not! He will not, take that back!" Shadow's insulting of her child, offended her more than anything Sonic, or any one else has ever said or done.

"Just listen, Amy!" he was becoming cross. "I'm an experiment, a mutated monster. The fact that I'm capable of reproduction is amazing in it's self. But there is no telling what affect my genes will have on the baby."

"Don't say that!" Amy screamed at her husband.

"What do you want me to say then!"

"Our baby will be perfect Shadow! He'll be just like you!" Amy was beginning to reach the point of hysteria.

"That's just it Amy! I don't want it to be like me!"

"Our baby is not an _it_! And don't say that! I would be the happiest mother in the world to have a son or daughter just like you!" Amy's knees quivered as she shouted.

"Will you listen to me! I don't want our child to be a freak!" At this point in the conversation, the telephone in the kitchen began to ring, but both hedgehogs hardly noticed, and continued their hostel negotiations.

"You are not a freak! STOP IT, STOP IT, STOP IT!" Amy covered her ears and shook her head about.

"Amy maybe it would be best to…" Shadow wasn't even able to finish his sentence. Amy jerked her head upwards in rage, and let her wrath flow.

"Don't you even think that! Don't you dare think that Shadow T. Hedgehog! I have waited to long for this and I **am **keeping this baby!" Before this moment, even though she felt anger towards him, she also pitted him for his worries. But suggesting they get rid of her child, that was unacceptable.

"But…"

"How could you be so selfish!" Amy interrupted him.

"You don't…"

"I have wanted a child for years! Years!"

"Am-…"

"And I am finally pregnant and you want to take that away!"

"Will you…"

"Think about someone besides yourself for once!"

"I…"

"If you loved me at all you would…"

"SHUT-UP AMY! SHUT-UP!" The pink hedgehog froze in place. In all the years they had been married, Amy had never heard him use such a harsh cold, cruel tone. She had never even heard him talk like that to Sonic before. It scared her and cause chills to run down her spine. Shadow breathed heavily with anger, but his eyes slowly began to soften. He had not intended to sound so blood thirsty, but the hedgehog could no longer take Amy's bantering and interruptions. And when she dared to try and say that he didn't love her, that hit a nerve. Shadow looked at Amy. She had no color in her face, body was shaking from all the excitement of yelling and crying, and she was practically cowering as she tried to stead herself. Shadow's tension immediately eased up, and he felt remorse for the way he exploded. Amy tried to back up, but lost her balance and fell. Shadow step forward, with intentions to help her, but she only swatted his hand away as she scooted across the floor and pulled herself up enough so she could use the edge of the bed for balance.

"Get out." She whispered.

"Amy…"

"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" Her eyes were still filled with fear as they began to tear up once more.

"Fine." Shadow replied coldly as he turned to door, grabbing an emerald from the dresser on the way out. He paused in the living room momentarily. Turning, he punched the wall with frustration, putting a fist size hole in the wall. He then ripped the door open and speed down the hall, chaos controlling before he reached the dead end. Amy pulled herself all the way onto the bed, and returned to sobbing. The tension could still be sensed throughout the entire apartment. In the kitchen, the small white telephone continued to ring.

**Wow! all finsihed! I would like to give speshel thanks to my friend Platonic, she always gives me a hand with my stories, proof reads them, and helps with my writters black... a round of aplause everyone! I know I promised that Rouge would have her kids this chapter... I do apologize! For I lied. But I can assure you, that she apsolutly will have them next chapter! Review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**I FINALLY UPDATED! I am soooooooooooooooooooooo sorry I took so long! Thank you for all the threats and hate letters saying I better update or else! There are some typos in here that I didn't fix. I ment to post this two months ago, after I fixed the typos. But since it had been so long, I thought I would just go ahead and post. Many apologies! **

A cool wind gently blew across Station Square Park, causing small particles of snow and leaves to dance across the ground. A fresh blanket of snow covered the earth's floor. Shadow observed from a distance as children built snow men, climbed up slides, and chased one another in a game of tag. He wasn't quite sure why the emerald had brought him here. When he chaos controlled out of the apartment, he hadn't picked a destination, for he was to upset and angry to give it much thought. The emerald had brought him here on its own accord. Shrugging it of as just an odd coincidence, the black hedgehog put the chaos emerald in his quills and sat down in the snow, staring at the sky in thought.

"_Why was I so harsh with Amy?"_ he pondered to himself as he closed his eyes, feeling the wind caress his face. Taking a deep breath, he once again tried to sort his feelings. Most everyone on this planet deals with emotions and thoughts, and they often sort through them, but for Shadow, most of these emotions were new. After Maria died, Shadow sealed himself off from the rest of the world. He cared not about the pathetic humans, and felt nothing but hatred, and loneliness. It wasn't until about 2 years after he met Amy that the hedgehog began to "feel", and even then he tried to suppress it.

As much as he wanted to think that he was right, and that Amy should, for once, respect his fears and wishes… he recalled the image of Amy, on the ground, wide eyed with fear, as tears began to leak from her eyes.

"Amy…," he whispered as he opened his eyes and allowed himself to lie in the snow. As he did so, the sun seemed to push through the clouds a little, causing him to squint and turn his head to the left. When he reopened his eyes, he observed a bench. A wooden and metal park bench covered in snow. Shadow pushed himself off the ground and walked towards it. He slowly pushed the snow off its seat, revealing oak planks. This is the bench Amy had been sitting on when he purposed to her. Shadow's knees felt weak; the hedgehog slow lowered himself onto the bench. "Amy…" he whispered her name again. As he did so, the hedgehog's heart softened and for just a moment he allowed his eyes to water, and for a single tear to roll down his cheek and into the snow.

"Stop it!" a small voice franticly yelled. "Leave me alone!"

Shadow turned his head to see what the commotion was all about. Before him was a small purple hedgehog who had previously been quietly playing in the snow, but he was now being chased by boys; a fox, a cat, and a bird.

"Stop!" he yelped again as the fox threw a snowball at the poor animal. Shadow looked intently at the hedgehog, there was something different about him, and he ran in an odd manner. The bird now threw a snow ball at the back of the creators head. The force from the throw caused the hedgehog to fall forwarded in the snow. It was then that Shadow noticed a deformity in the young lad's leg. The boy rolled onto his back and threw a snow ball back at the bird, hitting him in the stomach. "I said stop!" he cried again. The other boys scooped up snow and closed in on their target. Shadow rose to his feet, he could no longer watch the poor boy be tortured, but he was only able to take a few steps before another snow ball was thrown.

"Leave him alone ya' big bullies!" Shadow turned to see a turtle and another hedgehog running towards the brawl with a snow ball in each hand. They joined the snow battle. Shadow remained where he was standing and observed the children. The purple hedgehog stood in an up right position and he too began making snow balls. I small formed on the lads face as he ran along side the other children as they exchanged fire. What really surprised Shadow was that he didn't have any trouble keeping up with the other boys, despite his mangled leg.

"You're no fun!" shouted the cat, after being hit several times in the face. Twitching his whiskers he dropped his remaining snow balls. "I'm out of here!" With that he fled from the brawl, and his bird friend shortly fallowed. Having been abandoned by his companions, the fox wasn't quite sure of what to do. Though he didn't rely it at the time, he was now in the position the purple hedgehog had been when the struggle began. He eye's filled with tears as he turned a cowardly fled. The other children cheered with delight as they threw snow in the air and danced around in little circles. After the celebration ended, the turtle and second hedgehog began to introduce themselves to their new friend.

Shadow observed as they interacted with one another, and he was amazed that neither child commented on the purple hedgehog's twisted leg. Even though he was different, he was still accepted, if only by these two children. Shadow began to pace as his thoughts continued to turn in his mind. The purple hedgehog was handicapped, but he could still run, play, function relatively normally. Perhaps his child- may he be deformed or different- could adapt to a some what normal life too. But what if it… what if the baby was not born with any physical deformity, but became cold and hard like he was? What if he grew to hate the world and resent others as Shadow had. Shadow went back to the bench. He slowly traced the lines in the wood with his finger.

"Amy…" he whispered her name once more. "_Such a sweet name,"_ he thought to himself. He said it again in his mind, then again, and again, and again. Then it occurred to him, this was Amy's child too. He was so afraid that his spawn would be just like him, that he hadn't thought that it might take after its mother. And with a mother like Amy, how could any child be cold and unkind. Was she not the one that taught him the joys of the world? That taught him how to love and be loved. His offspring may take after him, but he will also take after Amy, who would love and nurture him more than any mother ever could.

Shadow jumped to his feet. He needed to get back home, he needed to apologies, he needed to let her know he could handle being a father. Shadow gave one last glance towards the children, and then with a small smile, he ran towards the road, pulled out his chaos emerald, and chaos controlled in an aurora of color.

Amy sat on the edge of her bed, with her back to the door. All color had left her face, and she had no more tears to try. She stared in a daze at the white wall with her hands in her lap. She wasn't thinking, she wasn't day dreaming… she was simple there; sitting for what seemed eternity as time slowly strolled around her. Amy heard a soft creak from behind, but she didn't move, nor did she blink.

Shadow walked slowly into the room. Amy was still sitting in the dark, and her appearance scared him. He stood for a moment, waiting for her to notice him, waiting for her to acknowledge his presence, but she remained motionless. Shadow went to Amy's side and sat next to her. He gently reached for her hand and held it in his.

"Hey," he said softly. The sound of Shadow's voice broke Amy from her trance and caused her to jump a little. She looked down at Shadow's hand, the one that held hers, and with her eyes she slow traced up his arm, make her way to his face. She stared only for a moment into his eyes; as if she was try to figure out who he was. With his other hand, Shadow raised reached towards Amy's face to cereus her cheek. She pulled away from him, pushing both of his hands away. Shadow's heart cringed with grief; he couldn't handle seeing his beloved like this.

"I'm sorry, Amy."

Amy's eyes began to water again as the blinked back to life.

"I love you," Shadow struggled to keep his own emotions at bay. "I shouldn't have been so harsh." He looked away for a moment as he tried to gather his words. "You mean the world to me. You are the world to me. I need you, and it kills me to see you unhappy."

There seemed to be a little more color in Amy's face as Shadow spoke. "What… what about the baby?" the soon to be mother said in a raspy voice as he placed a hand on her stomach.

"I can handle being a father… I want to be a father, but only if you help."

Amy smiled slightly and nodded. A tear slid down her cheek as she leaned towards Shadow and embraced him. "I love you too." Shadow pulled her close in a tight embrace and allowed his chin to rest on her head.

"Our child will be perfect," she told him. "If only to us."

**I know I didn't put the part in about Knux and Rouge, but there is no way getting around it for the next chapter! And it wont take me a year to up date this time, you guys need to keep on me! Don't let me be a slacker! And Many thanks to Platonic! Every one should measgae her and tell her she is amazing!**


	8. Tis The Season to SHUT-UP!

"AARRRRGGG!" The perspiring bat cried out in her contraction. "AHHHHH!"

Knuckles' eyes were as big as saucers and his nerves as sharp as jelly. He ran across the hospital room to the side of his terrifying wife. Everything had been running smoothly at the party and Rouge was actually having a nice time. For the past few months her moods had been completely unpredictable (even more so than usual) and in her agitation she often took her frustration out on Knuckles. But for one solid hour she was having a fantastic time, but then her water broke and with it opened the gates of hell.

"Is there anything I can get you?" The red Echidna began, "Perhaps a nurse..."

"OOOOO!" Rouge gave out a howl as she firmly griped her husbands hand, causing him to wince.

"Alright, alright! Not a nurse...a doctor! Doctors are better any ways! I will just go and..."

"Will you SHUT UP already!" With a huff and a puff Rouge struggled to pull herself into a sitting position as she threw the cumbersome bed sheets on the floor. "You've caused enough trouble already! And don't you DARE think the miracle of life will make me forget about it!"

Knuckles had faced many dangerous adversaries in his life time, but none of them ever came close to striking fear in his heart like this delirious, enraged, gorgeous bat that he had fallen in love with. "I told you I was sorry..."

"I DON'T WANT EXCUSES!" Rouge flung the pitcher of water at Knuckles, who was scarcely able to dodge it. "GET ME AMY! GET ME AMY RIGHT NOW! I NEED SOME LEVEL OF COMPENTANCY IN THIS ROOM!" Without a second of hesitation Knuckles darted out of the room for fear that the next thing Rouge might try to toss at his head would be the bedside table.

As the nervous Echidan exited the delivery room he was greeted by a nurse who was jogging towards him. Upon seeing Knuckles she came to an abrupt halt so that she could engage him in conversation. "Is she throwing things again?" she asked as she pushed her thin, brown bangs away from her face. Knuckles liked this nurse immensely. She was a short, sought middle aged women named Saddie. She was intelligent, a fast worker, and the only person who could keep Rouge under control. Most of the hospital staff did not seem to care for Saddie due to the sharp manner in which she spoke and her take charge personality. However, she remained calm in high pressure situations and was not afraid to put uncontrollable, pregnant, lunatics in their places.

With a slight chuckle Knuckles shook his head and threw his hands in the air. "The question Saddie," he began, "is not IS she throwing things, it is WHAT is she throwing."

"Ah, bats!" She responded with a scowl and as if this was not her first winged patient. "Don't worry, sonny boy, I'm heading in there now." With a pause Saddie gave him a quick glance from head to toe. "But you better take a break, you look awful!" Knuckles could not help smirk at the nurse's candied comment and was in the process of forming a clever response when a loud crash caught Saddie's attention.

"ROUGE!" Saddie yelled as she took off for the door. "If you throw one more thing I SWEAR by my southern roots that I will chuck it RIGHT back at you!" As Saddie ran towards the chaos, Knuckles quickly shuffled away from the delivery room to the payphone that was at the front of the hospital. Without hesitation he dropped some coins in the appropriate slot and quickly dialed Shadow and Amy's home number. With bated breath Knuckles began to count the rings- for after the seventh phone call he could, with confidence, say that their phone rang exactly 5 times before the answer machine picked up. That fifth ring came all too quickly and Knuckles kicked the wall in agitation as he listened, for what seemed like the one-hundredth time, to the worlds most annoying answer machine message.

"Hello dear caller," began the high squeaky voice. "You have reached Amy..."

"And Shadow," a low mumble added to the greeting.

"We are oh, so VERY sorry we missed your call," Amy continued the message. "But if you would kindly leave your name and number we will call you back as soon as possible! Oh! But don't leave your number now, wait for the beep! There is a beep right?" Knuckles could only presume that during this brief pause Shadow gave Amy a nod of acknowledgement because she continued by stating, "Oh good! There is, in fact, a beep! So wait for the beep, then leave a message, and then we will call you back! BYE!"

"Amy," the low mumble added, "you have to turn the recording off..." A moment of incoherent background noise filled up the remainder of the recording. As the worlds most awkward answering message came to a conclusion a mechanical "BEEP!" finally flooded Knuckle's ears. Clearing his voice, the aggravated creature took a deep breath before beginning.

"Hello Shadow and Amy, this is Knuckles and I was just wonder, oh I don't know, WHERE IN THE HECK YOU ARE! I HAVE LEFT 38 MESSAGES! 38 MESSAGES! Rouge is in the hospital right now giving birth to our SPAWN and she has been asking for Amy for the past 3 HOURS! My life is at stake here and I NEED BACKUP!" Clearing his throat a second time he added, "Pretty please," then he abruptly hung up the phone.

"Today did not go as planned," Knuckles muttered to himself as he allowed his back to slide down the hospital's brick wall until he was sitting on the sidewalk. How had the day gone so wrong? All Knuckles wanted to do was help, but it only seemed to make things worse. "We should have never gone to that stupid party..."

After an hour of cubed cheese, cocktail weenies and festive punch at the Sonic/Sally Christmas party, Knuckles began to notice his wife's mood change. Wanting to avoid the potential outbreak of World War III, he abandoned his conversation with Sonic and walked over to Rouge who was intensely staring at one of Sally's glass Christmas ornaments.

"Are you alright?" he questioned.

With pressed lips Rouge shook her head, "I don't know. I don't feel right. I think I'm starting to have minor contractions."

"Do you want to go to the hospital?"

"No... the contractions are too far apart, they will just send me home."

Knuckles could feel that the conversation was teetering at the edge of the danger zone. "Well... do you want me to ask someone here to take us back to Shadow's?"

"NO!" she snapped. "The last thing I need is everyone in this cramped little room to start fussing over me. Just call Shadow and tell him to come and get us."

"Consider it done." Parting ways with Rouge, Knuckles retreated to the silence of Sally's office. Using the phone on the desk he placed the call to Shadow and Amy. Since no one answered the phone, Knuckles left a brief message requesting a lift then headed back to his wife.

"Are they coming?" Rouge asked through gritted teeth.

"No one answered, so I left a message. Are you sure you are alright?"

"I think my contractions are getting worse. We really need to go. All of these loud people are beginning to get on my nerves. I mean seriously, if you have a house this small, why would you invite so many people?!"

Knuckles was beginning to get nervous, for he knew that at any moment the volcano would erupt. "I could ask Vanilla to give us a ride?"

"I said no! I don't want to be babied by that over sized rabbit! Call Shadow again!" Knuckles departed once more to make call 2 and 3 to his absent friends. No luck, they still were not at home. Walking back into the living room he saw Rouge leaning against the back of an arm chair with one hand gripping her stomach. Knowing that she would just send him away again, Knuckles went back to the office (for the third time) to make call attempt number 4. The only response he received was that annoying message and aggravating beep. The evening continued to progress in this manner until nearly an hour had passed and Rouge's nerves were completely out of sorts.

"Where are they?!" Rouge snapped as she struggled to keep her voice down.

"I don't know, I have already left them 15 voice mails." Knuckles' palms were now sweaty and his stomach was in nots.

"Go call them again!" And call him again he did (16, 17, 18). The Echidna was in the process of placing call 19 when a loud howl from the living room caught his attention.

"I'm fine! Get your squirrely hands off me!" Rouge's voice carried throughout the house. Slamming the phone down, Knuckles charged into the living room.

"Are you ok? Are you ok? Are you ok?" Stumbling over the carpet, Knuckles tripped and landed on the floor in front of Sally.

"Will you stop repeating yourself!" Rouge was leaning against the wall with Sally next to her attempting to steady the _very_ pregnant woman.

"I'm sorry, but are you ok?"

The hormonal bat rolled her eyes. "Of course I am ok! As I was telling Sally, I am just hot and this room is over crowded because someone does not know how to appropriately decorate with the space they have available!"

"But I thought you said you were having contractions?" As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Knuckles wished he could take them back. Rouge shot him a look that could curl milk and every eye in the room was rested on the soon to be parents.

"Oh, my gosh! I just KNEW that you were having contractions!" Chimed Sally with glee. "Didn't I say so, dear?"

"You sure did," said Sonic with a smirk.

"Oh my, we should get you to a hospital!" Vanilla exclaimed with worry.

"I don't need a hospital! I just need to rest!" Rouge's delight with the festivities had now completely ceased.

"Are you sure..."

"REST!" she growled. Excitement and tension began to fill the air. Rouge was escorted to the guest bedroom to "rest" and Knuckles returned to the study to make calls 20 through 25. By this point the dad-to-be was a nervous wreck. He was tripping over his own feet and stuttering during every other sentence. More than anything he wanted to get Rouge to the hospital, but Rouge was refusing to go without Amy.

"Amy can just meet us there." Knuckles tried to reason with the crazed woman as he knelt next at the bed Rouge was laying on.

"I told you, I want her there with me the whole time! She will be able to keep the Christmas circus from following us to the hospital. Now go and try...OOOWWWEEE!" Rouge gripped her sides as labor pains shot through her stomach and back. Knuckles helped his bride stand up and as her feet met the ground, her water broke; this caught Knuckles off guard.

"Did you see that! Your water BROKE!" He yelped in a high pitched voice.

"EEEEEKKKK!" came the squeal of the not so stealthy ease dropper. "Did everyone hear that? Rouge's water broke! This is the best Christmas ever!" Sally's voice rang through the house.

Rouge snarled as she muttered to her husband "I'm going to kill you for this." The next few minutes were nothing but a whirl of excitement and confusion. The whole house was in an uproar and every individual present, to Rouge's dismay, accompanied the new mother to the hospital. With every passing moment Rouge became more and more irritable. By the time they reached their destination irritation had transformed into violence, with the bulk of it focused on Knuckles.

Knuckles had now been absent from his wife's side for half an hour. He knew that it was time to head back in, but good old fashion fear kept him glued to that wall. "I might as well call one more time," he said to himself as he slowly rose from the sidewalk. Once again Knuckles dropped coins in the payphone and punched in the appropriate numbers. After the fifth ring his heart sank and with the beep of the machine Knuckles left his final message.

"It's me... again. I swear this will be the last time I call, but I really need..."

"Hello?" Shadow's deep voice came from the other end of the phone.

"WHERE ON EARTH HAVE YOU BEEN! I'm dying here!" Knuckles exclaimed.

"I couldn't find the phone. And are we talking a literal death or a figurative death?" Shadow said in a sarcastic tone. His dry humor was lost on the exasperated Echidna.

"Rouge. Babies. You. Here. NOW!" Knuckles really should have been a poet.

"We're on our way." And with that Shadow hung up the phone and in a flash of chaos light that blazed by the payphone, he arrived. Knuckles lifted his head to see Shadow and Amy standing next to him.

"Take me to her," Amy demanded. Without hesitation Knuckles nodded and the three of them hustled their way to the delivery room.


End file.
